#if he wanted to—he could stick all of them back in a deck of cards

[chryzure-archive]

azure rage is so important to me because it breaks down all the barriers and walls he’s built up around himself. and you know what? he does deserve to punch jacks in the face.

[simpleeticklish]

Don’t Drink Another Man’s Liquor (Or Start A Tickle Fight With Wolverine) || Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) Tickle Fic

Summary: Logan drinks Remy’s alcohol one too many times and the mutant decides to teach the man a little lesson in manners; naturally, Wade joins in. However, things don’t go exactly to plan when Logan decides to fight back.

Warnings: Canon-typical foul language, including sexually suggestive comments, and my inability to write a Cajun accent properly.

It had taken a good, long while, but things had finally settled down after the big fight against Cassandra (and to a lesser extent, the TVA). Wade’s universe was saved, the Sacred Timeline (whatever the fuck that even was, Wade still didn’t fully understand it) was stable, and everything had gone back to normal.

Well, for the most part.

A few things WERE different now. For one, Wade had a new roommate once Logan decided to stick around. Honestly, the mercenary couldn’t have been more pumped about it! Sure, they bickered a lot, and Logan ABSOLUTELY helped Blind Al cheat at poker, but the gruff man’s presence was like a breath of fresh air being blown into his stagnant life (and newfound franchise). With Logan around, things were never boring, and Wade would never turn down a chance to see those abs Hugh worked so hard on every day.

Second, Wade could now travel to any dimension he wished at any time thanks to that nifty little portal ring he’d swiped off Cassandra and conveniently forgotten to tell the TVA about. Recently, he’d decided to use it to pay a little visit to their new allies in the Void, just to cheek that the TVA kept their word about helping them.

Lo and behold, the TVA actually HAD honored their promise, and Wade was soon dragging Logan through the portal every other day. The “Others,” as Wade liked to call them, were all fascinating in their own right. Elektra was a total bombshell, and could actually be quite fun to be around once you got to know her. Eric was still stoic and distant, and Wade could tell it was going to take a WHILE to earn the man’s trust, but he proved to be an extremely fun sparring partner. And then there was Remy...

“Damn it, couyon! That’s the third bottle this month!” The Cajun’s irritated cut through Wade’s thoughts, pulling him back to the present. He glanced over from his spot on the couch, eyes landing on a very frustrated Remy standing by the open fridge and glaring daggers at Logan.

“And a damn good one too.” Logan retorted, a smirk tugging at his lips as he nodded to the empty liquor bottle discarded next to the trash can. “You should have tried some, you really missed out.”

“Maybe I COULD have if you didn’ go drinkin’ it all up the second it enters the room!”

The interaction didn’t surprise Wade in the slightest. Whether they were hanging out in the Void or back at the apartment, Logan and Remy were always sure to start bickering about something, namely the “mysterious” disappearance of Remy’s alcohol whenever Logan was left unsupervised for too long. It was as usually something Wade delighted in watching, but this time things were getting HEATED. When Remy moved to take out his deck of cards, the mercenary decided it was time to step in.

“Woah, hold your horses there, the Gambit That Never Was! Marvel can’t afford to rebuild this set if you trash my apartment; have you SEEN their financial losses since Endgame?”

Remy raised a brow. "I don't know what any a' that means, but it sure as hell ain't gon' stop me from puttin' this jackass in his place!" He replied, pointing an accusatory finger at Logan. "I don' told him not to touch what ain't his, but he can't seem to get it through that thick skull a' his."

Logan let out a sharp snort of laughter. "Maybe YOU shouldn't put your liquor in the communal fridge if you don't want it drank, huh?"

Remy moved forward with a low growl of irritation, but Wade was already on his feet, wedging himself between the two before things could escalate further. "I hear you, you want revenge! I totally get it! Lets just use a method that WON'T result in big ass holes in the wall...probably." He proposed.

"Like what? You gonna teach him how to annoy me to death? Because I hate to break it to ya, but you've already done THAT ten times over all by yourself." Logan sassed, crossing his arms as he moved over to take Wade's spot on the couch.

"First, rude. Second, no Peanut, I have a MUCH better idea that will provide our dear audience with a LOT more fanservice." Wade retorted, turning back to Remy before Logan could make another comment. "You want revenge? I'll show you exactly what buttons to push to get our grumpy little honey badger BEGGING you to accept his apologies. Well, one button in PARTICULAR does that, but there's plenty of other lil' soft spots you can play with in the meantime."

Logan froze, his eyes going wide as his breath hitched. "Don't you FUCKIN' dare-" He started.

Remy looked back and forth between the two, curiosity clearly piqued. "Ooh no, I think I wanna hear what he's gotta say." His voice was a borderline purr. "Now, sha, what were you saying about his...soft spots, was it?"

Wade was positively BEAMING, practically vibrating with excitement at someone actually taking INTEREST in one of his ideas for once. “Well, it turns out that big, sexy, badass Wolverine…”

“Longwinded, but go on.”

“Wade, don’t you do it, I swear to fucking god-”

“Is TERRIBLY ticklish!” Wade finished, grin growing more by the second, especially when a look of confusion, then pure mischievous GLEE flashed across Remy’s features. “And his laugh isn’t like that fake shit you see in pornos! His is real and downright ADORABLE!”

“Is that so?” Remy purred, beginning to stalk towards Logan, almost resembling a cat zeroing in on a cornered mouse.

His prey was scrambling backwards in an attempt to jump over the back of the couch, eyes wide and a snarl ripping past his lips. “Stay back! You touch me and I’ll fuckin’ skewer you!” Logan threatened. “Wade, you better keep your trap SHUT!”

Naturally, Wade ignored Logan’s words, beginning to approach from the other side with a downright devilish gleam in his eyes. “Ooh yeah, he’s PRECIOUS when you get ahold of that tummy of his. He’ll make just about any sound you can think of! Wheezes, snorts, moans…well, I haven’t got a moan out of him yet, but I’m still workshopping that.”

“Mind showin’ me a couple a’ those soft spots you mentioned earlier?”

“I’d be honored, Mr. Tatum.”

Logan tried to make a break for it, leaping across the back of the sofa in a desperate attempt to escape, but he was too slow. A hand grabbed ahold of his ankle, wrenching him backwards and making him land face first against the cushions. In an instant, there were knees on either side of him as someone lowered themself down to sit on his lower back, and Logan knew he was fucked when Wade’s chuckle sounded off next to his ear. “Sorry, can’t have you running off before the big wrecking! Our readers would be so disappointed!”

The mutant let out another low growl, trying to struggle free as his claws slid out, burrowing themselves into the couch cushions in frustration. “Go fuck yourself, Freddy Krueger!” Logan spat.

By now, Remy had appeared beside them, crouching down next to the couch to shoot Logan a smug grin. “Seems the badger gets a little feisty when caught in a trap.” He crooned, his tone spending a shiver down Logan’s spine, not that he would ever admit it. “Don’ you worry, you’ll be put outta your misery soon enough.” Remy curled and flexed his fingers, looking at Wade expectantly. “Now, what spots get him screamin’ the fastest?”

Logan opened his mouth to protest, only for his lips to slam shut with a barely-contained snort as wiggling fingers burrowed themselves into his sides. “Weeell, as I said earlier, his lil’ tum-tum is a KILL spot. However, that also means the little baby can’t take tickles there for too long, so I like to start off with the sides or hips to get him all warned up.” Wade instructed.

Remy didn’t need to be told twice, his hands slipping underneath Logan to grab ahold of the gruff man’s hipbones. Because if Logan’s position on his stomach, the hands were effectively pressed right against their targets, allowing Remy to get a grip with ease before starting to squeeze, slow but firm.

The dual attack nearly broke Logan instantly, the man having to bite down on his lower lip so hard he could almost taste blood just to keep his chortles at bay. His eyes squeezed shut, face pressed into the cushions as his body shook with barely contained mirth. “Gehehet your hands off me! F-Fuck…” Logan gritted out.

"Come on, Wolvie! You don't want to disappoint the audience, do you? Besides, I think our friend here is entitled to a bit of revenge, don't you? I mean, alcohol is EXPENSIVE in this economy, and you're guzzling it down at a rate that would be downright concerning if you didn't literally have the metabolism of a god." Wade replied, his fingers scribbling across Logan's sides, seeking out all the little spots that made the man jump with skill that said, yes, I HAVE done this before (many, many times, as it turns out).

"You got that right." Remy chuckled, squeezing slowly at Logan's hips with a careful consideration, watching for the slightest change in reaction to indicate he'd found a good spot. Logan jumped when the Cajun's fingers slightly grazed against his lower belly, breath hitching as a wheeze escaped his list. "Oho, it seems our friend wasn' kiddin' about that tummy a' yours. Well, as temptin' as it is to dig right in and make you screech, I think I'd rather that things nice an' slow. Slowly break you down, take you apart bit by bit. Would you like that, sha?"

Logan opened his mouth to curse with indignation, a bad decision on his part as loud giggling immediately started pouring out now that the floodgates had been opened.

Wade's eyes widened comically, his stomach doing a little flip at the teasing, even though it wasn't directed at him. "Jesus Christ, have you done this before or something? That's some shit you'd see in a fanfic, bucko, though I guess that IS appropriate..."

"Mmm, once or twice." Remy grinned coyly. "Ol' Blade can be a tough nut to crack, so sometimes you gotta get a little creative with your methods."

"BLADE? You tickled BLADE? Oh man, that's a story I NEED to hear."

Somehow, the two continuing to carry out a normal conversation while tickling him to pieces was MORE flustering for Logan than their straight-up teasing. The mutant's cheeks were bright red with embarrassment, his body shaking with giggles as he clawed desperately at the sofa in an attempt to escape. A shriek tore past his lips when Wade used this opportunity to dig into his exposed underarms, continuing to ramble at Remy all the while. "Fuhuhuhuhuckin' stahahahahap! Cuhuhuhuhut it out!" Logan shook his head, grin nearly splitting his face in two. “Nohohohohot thehehehere!”

Wade looked down at their victim, grinning sadistically as he drilled his thumbs into Logan's armpits, causing the mutant's legs to kick out in desperation. "Aaw, what's the matter, Peanut? Can't take it? Come on, we both know you LIKE this." He sang.

"He does, does he?" Remy's fingers finally wormed their way underneath Logan's torso, digging into his stomach and VIBRATING. "Ain't that just precious? You like our teasin' too?" Logan screamed with laughter. "You do? Well then, I would be happy to indulge you...tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle..."

Logan would never admit it, but the combination of attacks from those two BASTARDS and downright cruel teasing wrenched a squeal out of him, his laughter going wild as snorts began to slip out every few seconds. "SHUHUHUHUHUT UP! DOHOHOHOHON'T! YOU FUHUHUHUHUCKING PRIHIHIHIHICKS!"

"Don't shut up? Why, I thought you'd never ask!" Wade cooed, his fingers wiggling under Logan's chin, which promptly snapped down with a snort. "Gitchie gitchie goooo, wittle honey badger! Does it tickle real good? Huh? Huh? Aaw, listen to all those cute little piggy snorts! Isn't that just precious?"

"I'll admit, the little couyon DOES sound pretty damn cute like this. Maybe we should keep him this way, hm? Perpetually gigglin' his ass off, squirmin' like a catfish outta water."

Logan couldn't take this. Wade by himself was bad enough, the asshole knowing exactly what to do and say to drive him WILD from his countless previous tickle attacks, but when you added in Remy's more precise touches and subdued crooning? Logan felt like he was going to combust, laughter taking on a wheezy tone as one of Remy's finger found his navel and began scratching ruthlessly at the little kill spot. He had to do something, ANYTHING! Logan's struggling kicked up a notch, his claws sliding back into his knuckles as he put all of his strength into flipping himself onto his back.

In what MUST have been an act of divine mercy, the man actually managed to buck Wade off of his back, sending the mercenary toppling onto the floor. Logan’s instincts kicked in the moment he saw an opening, slipping himself onto his back and latching onto Remy’s wrists, still shaking with giggly pants. “Y-You’re fuhucked!” Logan growled, eyes narrowing.

The Cajun’s eyes widened. “Shit…”

In the blink of an eye, Logan was sitting upright, tugging Remy down into a sitting position on the couch beside him. Sensing the immediate danger he was in, the other mutant attempted to scramble away, only to find himself trapped in a vice-like headlock. “Where do you think you’re going, huh?” Logan smirked. “I think whatever fucking audience Wade keeps rambling on about would LOVE to see you get a taste of your own medicine.”

Wade, who up to that point had been nursing the broken wrist and bump to the head he’d received from the fall, sat up with wild, excited eyes. “Now you’re talking, Peanut! I knew you had a funny bone somewhere in that grumpy body of yours!” He beamed, scrambling over to the couch as Remy attempted to squirm free of Logan’s hold.

“Don’t get too excited, you’re next, Bub.”

“That’s fair.”

“Now, now! Don’t go doin’ anything you might regret!” Remy forced his tone to remain calm and smooth, despite the nervous grin already quirking at the corners of his lips. “You let me up and we’ll call it even, yeah?”

“Even!” Logan snorted. “We’re nowhere close.” The mutant turned his attention to Wade. “I’ll hold him still, you fuckin’ destroy him, got it? I’d do it myself but I don’t trust this slippery motherfucker not to try anything.”

Wade saluted. “Aye, aye, Hugh!” The mercenary cracked his knuckles, smirking at the trapped Cajun with pure delight. “Alright, you beautiful angel, let’s see if you share some of your actor’s sweet spots. I’ve heard Channing is VERY ticklish here!” He crowed, hands shooting down to dig into Remy’s sides. Immediately, Remy attempted to jerk away from the touches, lips slamming shut but doing little to muffle the snickers concealed behind them. “Aaw, did I find a giggle spot already? You know you can’t hold it in for looong!”

“Do you really have to say that shit?” Logan groaned, his cheeks tinged a light pink even though the teases weren’t directed at him.

“Hey, tickling is an ART, and TEASING is like the highlights on a beautiful oil painting! It just ENHANCES things!”

Remy cracked an eye open, shaking his head stubbornly. “Y-Yohohou think THIS is tihihicklin,’ you wouldn’t be ahahable tohohooo take five seheheconds of what I could do to you!” He sassed.

“Oho, somebody’s got a mouth on him! Well, unfortunately for you, so does Logan. Do the thing, Peanut!” Wade dug his fingers in more vigorously, wiggling and prodding his fingers into the sensitive flesh as he shot the clawed mutant an expectant look.

Logan looked utterly confused. “What are you going on about now?”

“You know, the THING!” Logan continued to stare at him with raised eyebrows. A light blush spread across Wade’s cheeks as he averted his gaze, moving his fingers to begin raking over Remy’s ribs in a vain hope of distracting himself (this, dear reader, pulled a SNORT from the poor Cajun). “With your mouth…you do it to me sometimes…”

“Wade, I swear to god-”

“Raspberries, okay!” Wade groaned. By now, a few snickers had slipped past Remy’s lips, albeit mostly at Wade’s clear flusteredness.

“Ahahaw, does the bihihihig, bahahahad honey badger tihihihickle you often, shahaha?” Remy teased, wobbly grin still managing to pull off an air of smugness. “Twohoho ticklish bihihihirds of a feheheheather!”

“You shut it! In fact, I think Wade had a GREAT idea on how to shut you up just now!” Logan growled.

“Wait, did you just compliment me?!”

Remy opened his mouth to protest, but any coherency died on his tongue as the clawed mutant’s lips found his neck, a loud “PFFFBT” of ringing out. Poor Remy didn’t stand a chance, especially when Logan started rubbing his scruff against the sensitive skin, a startled shriek preceding a torrent of wild laughter from the Cajun. “SHIHIHIHIHIT! N-Nohohohoho, dohohohohon’t!” Logan, of course, ignored this demand and blew a second raspberry, then a third, slowly driving Remy deeper into hysterics.

“Fuck yeah! I knew you’d loosen up eventually, you old stick in the mud!” Wade laughed, hands latching onto Remy’s thighs and beginning to squeeze, earning a squawk of surprise from their victim.

“Glad you think so, because I think you’re in need of some attention too for that little stunt you pulled.”

“Wait, what-LOHOHOHOHOHOHOGAN!”

“SEHEHERVES YOU RIHIHIHIGHT, TRAITOROHOHOUS SNAHAKE! FUHUHUHUHUCK, NOHOHOHOT THAT DAHAHAMNED BEARD!”

[rubyreduji]

timeless — ljh

summary: you’ve just met jihoon, yet something about him feels familiar

tags: fluff, romance, reincarnation?, gn!reader warnings: arranged marriages, mentions of death and war  reader notes: no pronouns or explicit gender descriptions but they do take a more feminine role in history, jihoon picks up the reader but my mans is strong okay don’t worry wc: 10.3k an: i’ve been writing this for over a month now fjdskla and i like the finished product but im a bit worried the format is choppy but either way please enjoy and show it lots of love...also happy first fic of the 2nd year of rubyreduji!!!

“Soonyoung, stop it!” You scold your best friend as he giggles at you.

“Just go talk to him!” Soonyoung tells you, pushing you towards the door to the antique shop next to your favorite boba place. 

Him refers to the cute cashier you always see through the windows when you and Soonyoung go and get boba (which is about three times a week). It’s nothing more than a hallway crush but Soonyoung keeps insisting that it could be more than that if you would just go talk to him. 

You don’t actually want to talk to the boy who stands at the counter with a smile, but before you can stop him Soonyoung is opening the door to the store and forcing you inside. When you turn around to chew your best friend out, you find him not there, his back already retreating to the boba shop. 

A part of you wants to just dash back out the door but the bell attached to the door has already gotten the attention of the cashier and you can’t escape now.

“Welcome to The Eternity Emorpium, today anything marked with a green sticker is 20% off.” The voice isn’t what you expected Cute Cashier to sound like but when you turn around to face him, you realize you’re not talking to Cute Cashier at all.

Rather than the tall boy with glasses you’ve been peeking in on for the past few months, you come face to face with a short yet buff boy with long black hair. He most definitely is not the guy you came in for, but you have to admit he is just as (if not more) cute than the other cashier.

You’re not sure how you didn’t notice that your normal Cute Cashier wasn't behind the counter, but in your defense you were too busy fighting off Soonyoung.

You give the new cashier—who you have now dubbed Even Cuter Cashier—a smile, before pretending to look at all of the memorabilia set out. The actual shop is nice with an obvious theme and specific layout that only someone with an eye for aesthetic and organization could create. On the speakers a Bruno Mars song is playing and you wonder if it's the cashier who has control over the music or just a general store playlist.

You feel awkward walking around the shop, letting out fake hums every once in a while to make it seem like you're actually shopping and not just sneaking glances at Even Cuter Cashier whenever you can. You stop in front of a playing card deck and you pick it up, flipping it over in your hand a couple of times.

"Oh, we just got those in," Even Cuter Cashier says, startling you a bit. "Put them on the floor this morning. You into cards?"

"Oh, uh," Shit. This is your chance to talk to him, "yeah. My dad is more of a collector than I am, but I can see the appeal."

"Nice. Yeah I'm more of a guitar collector myself, but my wallet wishes I wasn't," he says and you both laugh.

"That's cool though. I would love to learn how to play an instrument but I definitely don't have the talent or patience for that." As you speak with the man you slowly start to drift towards the counter.

"Hey, anyone can be talented, it just takes practice." You quickly glance down at Even Cuter Cashier's name tag to see his actual name is Jihoon.

"Good inspirational quote, but I think I'll just stick to the playing cards," you tell him with a grin as you set the pack down in front of him.

Jihoon just pushes the cards back to you and when you give him a questioning look he just grins. "They’re on the house.”

“Oh no, you don’t have to do that,” you tell him.

“I wanted to,” he says. “Maybe it’s just my plan to get you to come in here again.”

You smile at Jihoon, your face starting to turn a bit hot. You pick up the pack of cards and bid goodbye to the cashier before turning and leaving. Soonyoung is standing outside the door with two boba cups in hand. He peeks in when you open the door and frowns.

“That’s not Cute Cashier.”

“Nope! That’s Even Cuter Cashier,” you tell your best friend.

“You’re abandoning the other guy already?”

“I can’t abandon someone I don’t even know,” you scoff, “and anyway, I think I like Even Cuter Cashier. Something about him…it feels like destiny.”

Soonyoung laughs at you, but you ignore him, your mind still lingering on the dark haired boy from earlier. The more you think about him, the more your heart starts to grow warm. You can’t place it, but something about Jihoon feels familiar, and you need more.

1500s

“You are to be married to Prince Wonwoo before the solstice hits.”

Your head shoots up, staring at your father, not sure if you hear his words correctly. There’s no possible way he said that. You can think of a dozen reasons why that’s impossible, a few including: 1. You’ve never met Prince Wonwoo in your life, why would he want you as his betrothed? 2. You two did not have a courtship and it would be a scandal for you two to get married without presenting as a couple to the public first. 3. Your family is not nearly important enough to be noticed by royalty. 4. (And this is the biggest one) You are in love with someone else.

Well, your father doesn’t know that you’re in love with someone else, but it’s still an important fact to note.

Despite all of these reasons, your father continues to talk about the arrangement, not noticing the shock on your face. You wonder about how it came to be, and without you hearing even a whisper about it.

“You will be meeting with a royal advisor in two days, please do not cause any trouble.” With that your father walks ways, leaving you with a million questions brewing your mind.

The main one being: how are you going to tell Jihoon about this?

For over a year now you’ve been seeing the same man, sneaking out whenever you can to meet him. He came into town with a bang (quite literally — his caravan practically falling apart with all of his belongings crashing to the ground as it did) and you’ve been captivated by him since. 

Your days are never boring when Jihoon is around, the two of you either going on adventures or hanging out in Jihoon’s (new) caravan. Though, you think your most favorite times spent with Jihoon are late at night, when you two meet up on the outskirts of your estate grounds, right on the edge of the forest.

There never is any guessing as to what Jihoon has planned. Some days you two walk around the garden under the moonlight, talking and gazing up at the stars, while other nights you’re whisked off to another town to dance the night away in a hidden tavern. You love the guise of the night, being able to do whatever and be whoever without the fear of onlookers and their judgment. It’s just you and Jihoon in your own little world.

Maybe that’s why you’ve been keeping him a secret for so long, you like keeping him all to yourself. No one can taint your relationship if they don't know about it. Though you suppose that has backfired on you now.

You don’t see your father for the rest of the night and when the sunsets and you slip out the back door and walk down to the forest edge, you do it with a heavy heart. As always Jihoon is standing next to the tree he carved your initials in, a wide grin on his face and a bouquet of flowers in his hands.

As soon as he spots you approaching his face lights up in a grin. He trots up to you the rest of the way, scooping you up into a hug.

"I've missed you," he says, pressing kisses to your lips and cheeks. You giggle at his antics.

"You saw me two days ago, my dear."

"Oh but that's two days too long for an aching heart in love." 

Other people may think it's cheesy but you can't help but adore the sweet way Jihoon talks to you, always putting his poet background to good use. You smile as Jihoon holds you in his arms, but soon the good mood is ruined by the news you remember you have to break to him.

"What's wrong, my love?" Jihoon asks, seeing the fallen look on your face. He reaches up and pushes your hair out of your face, a habit he has picked up since you two met. 

You just sigh and shift so you're out of Jihoon's embrace. Automatically you miss his strong arms around your waist, but you can't bear to look at him as you talk.

“My father has given me away to another man,” you tell him in a hushed voice. 

“Who?” Jihoon responds automatically. “I won’t let him take you. I-I’ll fight.”

You finally turn towards Jihoon, the solemn look still firm on your face. “I’m betrothed to Prince Wonwoo.”

“Prince Wonwoo?!” Jihoon looks taken aback. You don’t blame him. Suddenly he deflates. “How am I going to beat that?”

You’re not sure how to respond. The truth is Jihoon can’t compete. That doesn’t mean you’re going to give up hope on him, though.

“We’ll…we’ll figure something out,” you finally say. You step closer to Jihoon, allowing him to wrap you up in his embrace once again.

“I’m not giving up on us,” Jihoon tells you, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

“We’ll be fine. We have to be.”

When your father told you you’d be meeting with a royal advisor, this isn’t exactly what you were expecting.

When you arrived at the castle you were amazed at the size of it, but you weren’t allowed to gawk for long, being ushered into a sitting room where two men were already conversing. Neither were your soon to be husband though and you wondered when you might actually get to meet the prince.

The two men soon introduced themselves as Soonyoung and Mingyu, two of Prince Wonwoo’s most trusted men. Now two hours later, you’re starting to question the judgment of your betrothed.

Not only are the men completely scatterbrained and disorganized, they also seem to bicker more often than not, making it difficult for you to understand everything they’re telling you. The only thing you really comprehend is that you’re going to be spending a lot more time with the two men up until the wedding.

You’re given a schedule at the end of the day, your upcoming weeks all planned out for you already. Meeting with wedding coordinators, royalty training, garment fittings, and everything else of the like. You frown, thinking about your normally free schedule has now been filled.

Luckily for you, the meeting finished earlier than expected and you don’t hesitate to direct yourself towards the area where Jihoon’s caravan resides. Your lover is delighted to see you but before he can get any words out you’re throwing yourself at him, pulling him into a kiss. You’re desperate to drown in Jihoon and forget reality even just for a moment.

It isn’t until later that you and Jihoon finally exchange words. 

“I can hear you thinking,” Jihoon says. You two lay next to each other on his bed, bare bodies pressed together under the linens. Your head rests on his chest and his hands card through your hair. “Was I not satisfactory in taking your thoughts away? What is troubling your mind so much?

“Prince Wonwoo.”

“You’re thinking about Prince Wonwoo after laying so intimately with me?”

“No! Well yes, but- I- shut up,” you grumble, smacking Jihoon’s chest, making his laugh.

You’ve never met the prince before, though you are well knowledged on him. It’s hard not to be when he is to take over the crown in a few years. You try not to think about how that will make you the queen consort.

You’ve only seen Prince Wonwoo in person a handful of times, none too recently, but you still know the prince is very handsome. Not as handsome as you find Jihoon, though you may be a bit biased. He’s also said to be kind, smart, level-headed, and well calculated. You suppose it could be worse. 

“I met with his advisors today,” you tell Jihoon. “I guess it’s just all hitting me. This really is going to happen.”

“Hey, listen to me,” Jihoon moves so he can stare at you in the face, “no matter what happens, I will always love you. My heart is still yours.”

“And mine yours,” you tell him softly. “I love you Lee Jihoon. Never forget that.”

You don’t see Jihoon for a while. Your schedule is packed with futile meetings that take up your day and with the news of your engagement to the prince (who you have still yet to meet), there are guards outside of your estate at night.

You suppose you are fortunate that Mingyu and Soonyoung have grown on you in the past few weeks. Though you still think them foolish, you also have a fondness for the pair. You see why Prince Wonwoo puts his trust in them. You find yourself wanting to confide in them, though there is one thing that still remains a secret.

It isn’t until the night before your wedding that you see your love. You are able to lose your guards for a second and you make a beeline straight to Jihoon’s caravan. He’s still awake, sitting outside and staring up at the starry sky when you approach.

“My dear,” you call out to him. Jihoon looks away from the sky to meet your face, a look of surprise flashes over his face before they form into a soft smile.

“You know you really shouldn’t be out so late at night, it is not safe.”

“Well then, why don’t you help me find some shelter kind sir,” you tell him. Jihoon just grins and grabs your hand, pulling you into his home. 

You two spent the night wrapped up in each other, exchanging soft kisses and even softer words. When the morning comes Jihoon is still asleep when you awake and while you’d love to give him a proper goodbye, you know you already pushed your luck enough spending the whole night out.

You quickly find a quill and some ink and you grab a piece of Jihoon’s writing parchment and scribble a quick note to him before slipping out the door. It’s only after the caravan is out of sight that you let your tears fall.

The first time you meet Prince Wonwoo is at the altar. Up close he’s even more handsome than you imagined, with soft facial features and kind eyes. You can’t help but still feel a bit disappointed, staring at the stranger in front of you as you recite your wedding vows.

The chapel where you are being wed is packed full of people, mostly nobility. Your attire is suffocating, despite being fitted for it thrice. Across from you, the prince keeps a neutral face and you wonder about his own involvement in this arrangement. 

He’s dressed in a formal outfit fit for royalty. The colors pair with your own dressings and you wonder what you two look like from the outfit. A newly bonded couple who will eventually be ruling the whole country. Are you two a handsome, strong presenting couple? Or do you two look like two fools who have never met before?

You were surprised at the way the public took the news of the engagement. You were expecting backlash against the prince, but he is well loved by the public and they were all happy to see the young man finding a partner to settle down with before stepping up to the throne. Despite never having been seen together in public before today, there was a wide talk of your (fake) courtship and how you must be very lucky to have the prince hold your heart.

If only they knew that a lonely, penniless poet was the real caretaker of your love.

It isn’t until the words leave the officiant’s mouth that you realize you will have to kiss the prince. Not only to end the ceremony but for the public to see you two unite as one. You must look as taken aback as you feel because your now husband takes the initiative, stepping forward to close the distance between you two.

Wonwoo cups your face gingerly, his hands are cold and his fingers are boney. He stares at you for a moment, dark eyes gazing into your soul, before he finally leans in.

The moment his lips press against yours you want to jerk out of his hold. It feels wrong. Your lips don’t fit together nicely and there’s no warmth exchanged between you two. You’re both stiff and you note how Wonwoo’s lips aren't as full as Jihoon’s. 

The kiss is over within seconds but the damage has been done and you can’t shake the dirty feeling that has grown under your skin. Wonwoo’s hand slides down your arm to clasp your fingers together. Another sign of unity for the public. You force a smile on your face, but the only thing you can think about is how your heart is miles away, in a small caravan on the edge of town.

My love,

I am not sure how you were able to convince the prince’s closest man to be a part of this, but I cannot say am I ungrateful for him. Though I do find him quite eccentric (and slightly obnoxious) I must give him my gratitude.

I miss you tremendously, but the past few letters you have sent me have been acting as bandages over my heart. I read them whenever I feel an ache of your absence, which is quite often.

It is unfortunate you find royal life boring. If I could, you know that I would sweep you off to the farthest lands where we would explore the area during the day and revel at night. I would show you the large world out there and we could experience new joys together. 

How I long to have you lay by my side at night. To feel your soft, tender skin against my fingertips. It pains me to even think about it, but it would kill me not to. 

I will never stop fighting for us.

Write back soon,

Your Jihoon

My darling,

I saw you today. I was taken quite off guard when I saw you riding in the carriage, next to Prince Wonwoo. I admit, you two make a handsome couple, but not more handsome than us.

It’s been so long since I’ve seen your beautiful face in person, that even seeing you with another man made my heart sing. I couldn’t pull my eyes from you, doing my best to soak in the sight of you because you were once again gone.

You looked quite winsome sitting in the carriage, but you did not look like you. Are you required to wear such extremities every day, or were you dressed for the occasion? Either way I cannot imagine the process of getting ready to be a swift one. 

If I am being honest I do not find the purpose of such efforts. Does the prince not find your natural beauty fit to his standards? If so then off with him. Any person with eyes would be fortunate to gaze upon you. I know I was.

Seeing you has only made me yearn more for you. I know it has only been a few weeks since your matrimony to Prince Wonwoo, but to me it has been lifetimes. How I crave to feel your touch, to hear your voice, to kiss your lips.

I know that the idea is futile but I will never give up on you. No matter what, I am still yours. And I hope you are still mine. Even if I only see a glimpse of you once every decade, my heart will still burn for you.

Forever yours,

Your Jihoon

To my heart,

Though you are always in my thoughts, you have been overtaking my mind more often than not lately. Please do not think I am upset about this, it is quite the opposite, but I am afraid I have been missing you a great deal more than usual.

Maybe it is due to a conversation I had the other day. I was at a tavern, catching up with an old acquaintance who was in town, and you came up. Jeonghan questioned if there was a reason why I had settled here and wondered if it was ‘due to my heart’. I laughed and confirmed his suspicions.

We spent a deal of time after that talking about you. It felt liberating being able to speak of you to someone else. I must have rambled on for at least an hour before Jeonghan finally cut me off, telling me how lucky I must be to have someone like you in my life. I had no choice other than to agree with him.

Speaking about you and thinking about you has thrown me into a tumultuous frame of mind. It is quite shameful how often I get lost in fantasies of us and what I wish we could be. You have overtaken my mind, body, and soul. There is not a single night where I do not dream of you.

I hope our future king can see how fortunate he is to be married to you. I would kill thousands of men to be in his position. Your smile itself is worth more than every jewel on his crown. I know I am just waxing poetic at you, but that is my job.

I know we must stay apart, but please mourn the future we could have had for me. Please write back to me with every thought you have about our imaginary future, because even if I cannot have the real thing, my dreams will be enough for me.

Dream of me as well,

Your Jihoon 

The life between you and your husband is…comfortable. You two talk, but not often and seldom about anything that is not shallow or mundane. You two sleep side by side at night but the last time you two touched each other was when you danced at your wedding and while his days are spent in meeting, yours are spent wandering the castle grounds and having tea with Soonyoung and Mingyu.

The only thing you find yourself looking forward to in your days anymore is the nightly lettering that you receive from Jihoon. It was only a week into the marriage when Soonyoung noticed how miserable you were. Without being able to hold it in anymore, you told the man about your lover and your heartbreak. It was then that Soonyoung suggested he help you out, acting as a carriage pigeon to deliver letters to and from Jihoon.

One night you are sitting at the desk in your shared chambers with Wonwoo, writing your letter for Jihoon, when Wonwoo speaks up. He is sitting on the bed across the room and his deep voice startles you, not used to talking to the man like this.

“Are you happy?” Wonwoo asks you bluntly, after calling out your name. You take only a moment to form an answer.

“I am content, my lord,” you tell him. Though you have stopped referring to the man as “Prince Wonwoo” in your mind, you cannot help but tack on the formal titles at the end of your sentences to the man.

“But you are not happy. Why?”

“Rest assured your highness, it is nothing you’ve done.”

“Does it have anything to do with the letters Soonyoung delivers to you each evening? The letters you are writing back right now?” You freeze in your seat. You were unaware he knew, but the prince is not ignorant. You suppose you couldn’t keep it a secret forever.

“I-”

“Do not mistake my curiosity for accusation. I’m aware this arrangement is not an ideal situation, and I would not be upset if there was another. I would not even be upset if you wish to be with him,” Wonwoo says. 

His words trouble you. There is a benefit for both of you in the marriage, but his words imply he is not exactly happy with the arrangement either. The offer to let you leave him is strange though, and causes you to fault for a moment.

“I am not going to abandon you, sire,” you eventually respond. “I have made an obligation to you.”

“No, your father did. Though we are not well acquainted I still hold empathy and I do not want to be what is keeping you from your happiness. From your happy ending.”

“Either way my father’s word is say, so I will do what he asks of me. It is an honor to be wedded to a man of your status,” you tell him, trying to convince yourself more than anything.

“But that is all it is: status. What about love?”

You don’t answer. You sit there and stare down at the letter you are writing to Jihoon. You think about the wooden box hidden in the drawer that holds his letters.

“Please, I do not wish to cause you turmoil. If you want to go, I will not hold you back,” Wonwoo says. 

You finally turn to look at your husband. “You are very kind-hearted, but I cannot accept that offer. I will not tarnish your reputation like that. Do you know the talk that would rise if they heard the soon-to-be king’s spouse up and left? What would your father do to mine? It is too risky.”

Wonwoo has a morose look on his face, like he knows you’re right. “Tell me about him,” he says, surprising you.

You hesitate. You should not talk of your lover to your husband. It is unorthodox and unbecoming. You look at Wonwoo’s curious face though, and you can’t help yourself.

“He’s a poet. I’ve never met someone who can use words the way he does. Even in things as simple as short letters or passing comments, he can make it sound like the most romantic sentence ever uttered,” you tell Wonwoo.

“Tell me more.”

“He has a kind soul, like you. He’s very exciting to be around. He used to travel the world, so I love to hear him regale the tales of his adventures. He likes to take me on our own little adventures as well. One time a traveling show came through a neighboring town and he got us tickets to go watch.”

“You love him greatly.” It is not a question. You just nod to Wonwoo. “You light up when you speak of him. In a way I’ve never seen before.”

You don’t know what to say to him, so you turn your back to him once more, resuming your letter to Jihoon.

You love Jihoon, everyday apart from him feels like you’re struggling to breathe, and under any other circumstance you wouldn’t have stopped at anything to be with him, but you are not under those circumstances. You fought your father, refusing the marriage, even telling him you loved someone else, but he did not listen. He told you this was the one thing he would put his foot down on.

You can’t blame him, how often does someone get the chance to marry a prince. The things this marriage is doing for your family is immeasurable and you cannot in good conscience leave them without a second thought. Not to mention the damage it would do to your family’s reputation, let alone Wonwoo’s. Your family would be shunned by the public and Wonwoo would be labeled a joke of a king.

Not to mention if it was ever discovered what really happened. What would happen if everyone found out why you left? You and Jihoon would surely be ostracized. Town piranhas in even towns in other kingdoms. Jihoon’s career as a poet would be over. You can’t imagine that being a happy life.

Not that you’re particularly happy right now either. You wish you didn’t overthink everything, or else you would have left the town even before you got married. You and Jihoon could be living in his caravan, just you two alone, safe and sound and happy.

It is too late for that though, and now you have to pay the consequences. Married to a man you know nothing about. A man who seems to be rooting for you despite the outcome. It makes you frown. Maybe your first step in figuring it all out is figuring out your husband first.

“Have you ever been in love, my lord?” You decide to ask Wonwoo one day while walking the castle’s grounds. As of recently you two have gotten closer, an interesting bond forming between you two, though most of your time is spent talking of Jihoon. Wonwoo never draws back on his suggestions that you follow your heart. 

“Not in the way you are. I was very fond of someone a long time ago, but they loved someone else.” You frown at this news. 

“Please excuse the crudeness of my words, sire, but then why do you put so much mind into my love? Do you not wish to be wed to someone?”

“I do,” Wonwoo answers after a moment of contemplation, “but I do not want to be the reason why true love is separated. You and your Jihoon, you are a story of fate. Who am I to get in the middle of it? The public likes me enough, I will be okay. No matter what, I will be okay, but will you?”

Your heart aches and yearns for Jihoon, and your husband is not making it easier. That may have been his goal though.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?” You ask Wonwoo. You frown as you stand in front of him, your stomach in knots of worry.

Wonwoo just gives you a soft smile. “I am sure. If anything, I should be worrying about you. Do you have everything you need?”

“Yes. Both Soonyoung and I checked twice. You have ensured that everything will run perfectly.” You reach over and take your husband’s hands in yours, squeezing them tightly. “Thank you, Wonwoo. For everything.”

“Ah, it is the least I could do. Now, you have somewhere to be and I cannot keep you waiting any longer. Send me letters, okay?” With a final squeeze of your hands, Wonwoo lets you go. You smile at the man once more before turning away from him and not looking back.

You slip out of the castle through the servant’s doors and quickly make your way to the outskirts of the grounds. It reminds you of all those times you escaped your own house to meet Jihoon at the edge of the forest. The thought makes a grin grow on your face as you speed up your pace even more.

Just like all the previous times, when you get to the edge of the estate Jihoon is standing there waiting for you. You launch yourself into his arms, allowing him to pick you up and twirl you around. He’s giggling high pitched and gleeful as you two spin around in each other’s arms.

When Jihoon finally puts you down he doesn’t waste a moment and leans in to kiss you. You happily kiss him back, grabbing his face and holding him in place. You can feel a wet stream of tears run down your face, your heart bursting with joy as you reunite with your lover.

His lips are familiar against yours and you automatically feel at home. For the first time in months you can relax, finally back in Jihoon’s arms.

“It’s you,” Jihoon muttres when he finally pulls away. He brings his hands up to caress your face.

“It’s me, my love, it’s me,” you tell him back, tears still flowing freely.

“I’ve missed you so much.”

“I’ve missed you more.” You lean in and press another quick kiss against Jihoon’s lips. “But we will never have to miss each other again.”

“I’m never letting you go,” Jihoon tells you, gripping you tighter. “Oh how much I love you.”

You giggle. “I love you more. Now come on, let’s get out of here.”

You grab Jihoon’s hand and pull him away from the grounds to where his caravan is waiting for you two. As you two travel further and further away from the town you feel your heart grow lighter and lighter, excited for the rest of your life of adventures with your love.

The next time you see Jihoon is nearly a week later. You and Soonyoung are once again getting boba when you spot the boy behind the counter, just like last time. When you and Soonyoung went and got boba a few days prior you noticed that the original Cute Cashier was working, and you couldn’t help but feel a bit of disappointment at him not being Jihoon.

As soon as you lay eyes on your Even Cuter Cashier, you quickly make a beeline into the shop, your desire for boba long gone.

Jihoon looks up when he hears the sound of the bell ringing and his eyes soften into a smile when he sees you entering through the threshold.

“You came back!”

“I did. It’s hard not to, with the amazing service I got last time,” you say. You casually browse the store as you talk to Jihoon, glancing at him every so often as you do. 

“Well I’m glad that my plan to get you to come back succeeded.”

You giggle at Jihoon’s words as you stop in front of a stack of old photos. You flip through them, looking at all the memories they hold. Many of the photos depict different couples, all smiling brightly as they hold each other. The images put a smile on your own face.

“Find something good?” Jihoon asks and you jump a bit at the closeness of his voice. When you turn, you see the man standing by your side.

“Oh, yeah, just these photos! Aren’t they beautiful?” You tilt them a bit to show them off to Jihoon. “I think it’s so amazing that no matter how the world changes, love will always stay the same.”

“Huh, I guess you’re right. Love’s been around since the beginning of time.”

“The love these people were feeling in these photos is the same love we experience today. There really is nothing like it.”

You look back down at the photos. The one in your hand shows a woman clinging onto a man’s arm, her cheek pressed into his bicep as she smiles at the camera. The man himself is smiling as well, though he is smiling down at the woman, rather than the camera. 

“They’re cute,” Jihoon mumbles, his own eyes transfixed on the photo. 

“Yeah,” you say, “I wonder what’s their story.”

“Something happy, I hope,” Jihoon says before moving to walk back behind the counter. You grab a few more photos from the stack before following after him, placing them on the counter.

Jihoon smiles at you and starts to ring you up. You take a moment to stare at him, your eyes tracing over his fluffy hair and round face and kind smile. You don’t stop staring until Jihoon breaks your focus.

“What? Does my hair look stupid or something?” He grins lazily at you again and you feel your heartbeat quicken.

“Uh, n-no! It’s just…your smile is super familiar to me. Sorry, that may be weird.”

“No, no, it’s not. I guess I kinda felt the same thing the first time you came in,” Jihoon tells you. “Who knows, maybe we knew each other in a past life.”

You chuckle at Jihoon’s joke, but you don’t stop thinking about it for the rest of the day.

1951

War Against North Korea Rages On, No End in Sight

You frown at the heading, throwing the newspaper aside onto the counter. The news of the North Korean troops invading Seoul changed everyone’s lives, throwing the country into a state of chaos trying to keep them from completely overtaking all of South Korea. Now a year later, the war is still in full force and though you know it’s important to stay updated on what’s happening, you don’t bother with the news articles anymore. They always say more or less the same thing: the war continues on with more casualties and less hope of ending soon.

Your heart grows heavy with each day growing worse than the last. You wish there was more you could do to help the war efforts, but you’re stuck at home taking care of your sick father. He’s the only family you have left, after your mother’s death a few years ago. All of the money received from her passing has gone into your father, but since the start of the war prices have done nothing but skyrocket.

So you spend your days at home taking care of your father, and your nights in a factory working to earn an income. You don’t mind the work though, allowing your mind to focus on something that isn’t the war or your father.

The only other time you get a break, an actual real break, is on Saturdays. It’s the one day in the week you allow yourself to go out, spending the afternoon to yourself getting groceries and taking time to focus on yourself.

You go through the same routine, walking down to the port and spending a few minutes enjoying the waves lapping against the shore, the salty sea water scent filling the air as the summer breeze brushes up against your skin. After taking in the sight of the sea, you move further into town and down the street to the cemetery.

Every Saturday you visit your mother’s grave, sitting with her for a while as you update her on your life and the current events. Occasionally you will bring a book and read aloud. You find the time spent with her calming, her maternal love enveloping you and letting you rest, even for a small bit of time.

Afterwards you browse the shops in town (only looking, never buying) before heading to the market to finish your day off. You spend the money for the groceries to get you through the week before heading back home. You do your best to walk most places you go, not wanting to spend the fare for the trollies. 

The streets are busy on the weekend and on your walk back to your house, someone bumps into you causing you to drop your bags, all of your freshly bought groceries tumbling to the ground. The person doesn’t even stop and you can’t bother chasing them too. You just sigh and bend down to pick up the now unusable goods. 

You now have to turn around and go back into town to get more groceries. It will take a good chunk out of your funds, but not too much. Maybe you’ll pick up a few more shifts at the factory.

“Excuse me, are you okay?” As you’re thinking about how to make up the price of the ruined groceries, you miss the man who has walked up to you.

When you look up you see a beautiful man with a sweet round face and dark hair staring down at you. He’s dressed nicely in a suit and it takes you a moment to actually respond to him, too distracted by his good looks.

“Pardon?”

“I was asking if you were okay?” The man bends down to help you pick up the rest of the food spilled on the ground. “I saw that man bump into you and I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Oh! I’m fine, thank you.” You smile at him, appreciative of the kind gesture.

“But all of your groceries are now ruined. Allow me to buy you more.”

“Oh no! That’s not necessary,” you quickly tell the man. You don’t even know him and you would feel guilty allowing a man who didn’t even cause the casualty to pay for your groceries, especially with the state of the economy.

“I insist,” he says, standing and then helping you stand as well. “It’s the least I could do.”

“Sir it really-” Before you can even finish your sentence the man was walking away, back towards the town. You could just go back home, but then you’d be left with no groceries for the week so you begrudgingly follow him back to the market.

“Lee Jihoon, by the way,” he tells you as you two walk around the market, collecting what you need. You give him your name as well and he grins, a small spark igniting behind his eyes as he tells you how lovely your name is.

When you’re done regathering what you need you move to head to the register, but Jihoon stops you.

“This is all you’re getting? It’s barely enough for any proper meals. Please, add more. I won’t mind, I demand of it actually.” Jihoon then moves to add more to the basket and once again you have to follow along as Jihoon is the one carrying it.

You protest each time a new item is added but Jihoon keeps hushing you like you’re a life long friend rather than a stranger he met on the street no more than thirty minutes ago. By the time Jihoon is satisfied with what’s in your basket, it’s full to the top and you can’t remember the last time you’ve seen so much food in your life. Guilt eats away at you as you think about the money Jihoon is about to drop on you just because someone else made you drop your bags.

It isn’t until you’re checking out and Jihoon casually pulls out multiple banknotes without even a blink of an eye that you realize that not everyone lives like you and that just maybe Jihoon doesn’t mind paying so much because he has the money laying around to do so. Even back when your mother was alive and your father was able to work your family was still paying for everything with scraped up coins.

The sun is already low in the sky by the time you two exit the market and Jihoon stops you once more. “Allow my driver to take you back to your house.”

The sentence alone confirms your suspicions on Jihoon’s monetary status. To own a car is a luxury of its own, but to have a driver as well seals the deal.

You already can tell it’s impossible to turn Jihoon down so you just follow him back to his car. You wonder if his driver followed you after you two walked to the market. When you two get into the car you tell your address to the driver, trying not to get embarrassed at the thought of the nice car driving through your run down little neighborhood. 

Jihoon’s driver just nods and starts up the car. The three of you sit in silence until the car pulls up to your house and you climb out. Jihoon does as well, helping carry your groceries to the door.

“It was nice meeting you,” Jihoon says. “If you ever need anything again, give me a call.” He holds out a small white card, his business card, to you. You take it and thank him once more before entering your house, your mind still lingering on the strange, rich man.

You don’t give Jihoon a call, but you don’t have to. You run into him again not even three days after your first interaction. It’s early in the morning and you’re heading back home after work when you hear your name called out. When you turn you see the man’s car rolling up next to you, his head poking out of the back seat window.

“What are you doing walking alone so early in the morning? The sun has barely started to rise.”

"I'm walking back home from work," you answer honestly.

Jihoon's face looks sour at this, like he couldn't imagine working so late at night. "If you have been working all night let me treat you to breakfast."

It's your turn to let your face screw up slightly. You know that Jihoon can afford to buy you breakfast, but you still don't want to feel indebted to him. Not to mention your father will be waking up soon and you'll need to make his breakfast as well. You tell Jihoon as much.

"Then I will buy breakfast for your father too," is his solution.

You're not sure why he keeps insisting on buying you things but you just sigh and climb into the car. Jihoon has a smug grin on his face as he tells his driver where to go.

A few minutes later the car pulls up in front of a diner and you and Jihoon enter. It's nothing extravagant, but still a treat for those with a tight budget. 

The two of you sit in silence until a waitress comes and takes your order. Jihoon doesn't allow you to order for yourself, picking what he tells you are the most delicious and filling items. He orders for himself and then a third meal, asking the waitress to not cook it until she brings the check.

You note the way Jihoon has a nice presence to him, friendly and warm and inviting. The way his soft features are accentuated when he smiles, his round cheeks puffing up and his eyes squinting. You find him fascinating, but there's something more than that, something drawing you to him.

"So, where do you work that has you walking home at six in the morning?" 

The question breaks the ice between you as you fall into a natural conversation, asking questions and trading answers. Your hesitations towards the man quickly ebb the more you talk.

You learn he's a highly successful businessman but the war has halted much of his work which has given him some much needed down time. Like you, he doesn't have many living family members and he's an altruistic man so much of his money is left unspent.

Before you know it both of your meals are finished and the waitress is bringing over the check and the packaged meal for your father. Just like at the market, Jihoon pulls out his banknotes and pays before escorting you back to his car.

When you arrive at your house a part of you feels disappointed that the morning with Jihoon is over. Now it's back to the real world. 

You're halfway to your door when you suddenly turn back around. You don't know what causes you to say it before you can stop yourself you spit out, "Would you like to come in for a cup of tea? It's the last I could do after all of your kindness." 

Jihoon beams in front of you. "I would love that."

Bloodiest Battles of the War So Far, Conscription Soon to Follow?

Five months after you meet Jihoon he knocks on your front door, a letter clutched in his fist. There's a grim look on his face when you open the door and you know automatically.

The Battle of Bloody Ridge, follwoed by The Battle of Heartbreak Ridge, took out many of the soldiers on the frontlines and the country was now desperate to find new ones to replace them. A mandatory conscription for any young man who was eligible to join the military.

It didn't take long for you and Jihoon to start a relationship after your first few meetings. He's the perfect man, taking care of both you and your father and showering you in nothing but love and affection. The thought of him so far away, in the direct line of danger, makes a lump grow in your throat. Your chest tightens as your heart aches.

"We'll be okay," Jihoon mutters into your hair as you cry silently into his neck, holding him tightly. Like if you hold him tight enough he won't have to leave.

That's not how the world works though, and you accompany Jihoon on the day he is to deploy.

"If you need more money just send me a letter and I'll take care of it, okay?"

"You've left me with plenty already, love," you tell him as you fix his jacket collar. "Just come home safe."

"As long as you make sure I have something to come home to."

You can already feel the tears welling up in your eyes and you lean forward to press your lips to Jihoon's. He kisses you back, putting all of his love into it. A promise to you, that you will see him again, that this isn't your last kiss.

With one last squeeze of the hand Jihoon boards the bus and you're left alone, a heaviness in your heart and worry forming under your skin.

You just have to keep telling yourself he'll be okay, he has to be.

December 19, 1951

To the one my heart has gone to,

I hope you don't mind the frequency of my letters, I just feel closer to you know that eventually you'll hold the same paper in your fingers. I miss you tremendously, to the point my heart aches thinking of you.

Do you know that when you send your letters they smell of you? I always keep your most recent ones safe, in hopes to preserve the smell for just a little while longer.

There's not much to report about today, which I suppose is a good thing. Better than something hectic or even worse, a battle. 

Unfortunately it still doesn't look like there will be a break anytime soon. Battle after battle, life after life. It's not easy, but I've come to like the other men in my unit. Jeonghan takes good of us and Seokmin makes nice company. 

I don't want to keep you long, but I wanted to make sure you'd get a letter for before the holidays hit. Merry Christmas my love.

I'll make it up to you when I get home okay? For now just keep me in your dreams.

Write back soon, please. I want to hear what my lover has been up to. Keep me updated on your father as well.

All my love,

Your Jihoon

March 22, 1952

Today was hard.

I'm doing unwell as I write this letter, but it would pain me more not to send you my update.

Kwon Soonyoung died next to me today on the battlefield. It is not the first time a man has died near me, but it is the first time it was a man I have grown fond of. He was only a few months older than I am.

As grim as it may sound, and as much as I will mourn the loss, I am grateful that it was not me in his place. It was a difference of mere inches and fate chose Soonyoung. Does it mean anything? Is there a reason why I lived and he didn’t? I’m not sure but all I can think about is that his sacrifice is giving me a second chance at going home. Does that make me a bad person?

Everyday I pray this nightmare will be over. The thought of you is the only thing encouraging me to go on. I think about coming home to you, kissing your sweet lips, holding you in my arms.

We’ve been apart longer than we were together and I beat myself up for that everyday. I wish we would have met earlier, but as soon as the war is over we will have all the time in the world. Just you and me.

Wish me home soon,

Your Jihoon

November 30, 1952

To the home of my heart,

You have been on my mind all of today, not that you aren’t always on my mind normally. It has been particularly hard today though. It’s been a full year since my departure from you and every day has been harder than the last.

It’s hard to sleep at night and I often lay awake and think about you. Sometimes I will take a walk and look up at the sky. The moon and the stars are thousands of miles away but they still seem so close and bring so much comfort. That’s how I feel about you. Gazing at the moon also helps because it is still the same moon that you are under as well.

Look at the moon and think of me okay? Maybe one night we will be looking at the moon at the same time and I will be able to feel you just a bit closer.

Whenever I am able to fall asleep, I dream about you. I dream about the thought of you laying next to me. I wish to kiss your soft lips and feel your warm skin and look into your shining eyes. I dream of the life we will build together when we are reunited at last.

Would you marry me, my love?

I know it’s silly asking over a letter like this, and asking with such a strange courtship, but something in me feels the need to ask. Ever since I met you on the street that one fateful day, I’ve known you were the one for me. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, so please accept my proposal (I promise to give you a proper one the second I get home).

The other men keep teasing me about you, but they just don’t understand the love we share. Being with you, even just the thought of you, it feels like home.

A part of me wonders if I’ve secretly loved you my whole life. It sure feels like it. No matter what I know you were made for me and everyday I bless whatever force brought us together. I love you so much it drives me crazy.

When I get home let me take you out on a thousand dates to make up for the time lost. 

Please send me your answer soon,

Your fiance Jihoon

February 01, 1953

To my dearest,

I’m writing to you from the infirmary. I was shot in battle earlier, nowhere too fatal just the leg, but I just woke up from the procedure to remove the bullet and patch me up. I’m lucky to come out with nothing more than a scar. Some other men aren’t as lucky.

It seems everyday is a new fight, but it’s worth it if it gives me a chance of going back home to you. We’ll buy a house close to the port, so you can be near the ocean breeze. Every night we’ll walk the shore and watch the sunset together. Then on Saturdays I’ll accompany you on your errands. We’ll go to town together and get groceries and visit the cafe and do whatever your heart desires. 

I’ll buy fresh flowers for your parents every week.

We could get a cat to keep you company while I’m at work and you could quit that heinous job at the factory. That would give you more time to focus on yourself. You and I both know that my wealth is more than enough for just the two of us.

Our house shouldn’t be too big, but still a good size in case we ever have guests over. I think we should start a garden as well.

Ah, my love, thinking about our future is nice. It helps me wish for the future, helps me feel closer to you. Thank you for being my safe place away from this nightmare. I should rest more now, but please remember that I will always spend everyday loving you.

Pray for my speedy recovery,

Your Jihoon

July 07, 1953

Jagiya! I apologize for the lack of letters recently, things have been so hectic around here, but I write with good news!

The talk around camp is that the negotiations have been making a move, there is finally an end in sight. I cannot wait to get back to you. It has been far too long since I’ve seen you and the photo I carry of you has started to fade already from how often I admire it. 

I cannot stay to write for long, but I needed to send you an update and a reminder of my love. I promise we will be back together soon.

Go to town and buy some flowers for yourself okay? Today is worth celebrating.

I can’t wait to see you,

Your Jihoon

You’re jittery as you smooth down your shirt, waiting for the bus to pull up. The same bus that took him away nearly two years ago.

When all of your friends heard about your beau, they all called you crazy. Holding out for a man who has been gone for quadruple the amount of time you spent together and you guess maybe it is crazy, but for Jihoon you would do anything.

It is true that you two were only together for five months before his deployment, but even before he left you knew you were madly in love with Lee Jihoon. You spent your nights reading the letters Jihoon sent you, and writing ones back. You would think you two had been lovers for fifty years rather than five months.

You’ve always felt the pull towards Jihoon though, like you’ve been loving him all your life. Every letter he sent made you fall in love with him even more, and now two years later he’s finally coming home. 

The days were hard without him when you saw him nearly everyday before he left. Winter of 1952 was less than kind, taking your father with it and leaving you alone for the last seven months, wishing for nothing but for Jihoon to come home. Now he is and you couldn’t be more elated.

The people standing around you start to cheer when someone catches sight of the bus, but you can’t do anything but stand there, your heart pounding in your chest. When the bus stops and soldiers start to pour out you have a moment of doubt. The fear that Jihoon won’t want you anymore, that everything has changed for the worse, creeps into your mind.

The thoughts can barely form though because then Jihoon’s stepping off the bus and his skin is so much tanner than it used to be and you’ve never seen him with his hair so short but it’s Jihoon, your Jihoon. His eyes light up when he catches sight of your familiar face and he’s dropping his bags and running towards you.

His arms are locked around your waist and you’re being lifted off the ground. You cup Jihoon’s face in your hands and lean down to kiss him as he spins you two around, easing all of the worries in your mind. Your cheeks dampen as tears start to stream down your face, too many emotions coursing through you to keep them all on the inside.

You keep your hands on Jihoon’s face as he sets you down. You stroke his cheek, feeling his warm skin under your touch. “You’re here, you’re really here.”

“I’m here my love, I’m here, and I’m never leaving you again.”

It doesn’t take much longer for you and Jihoon to leave the station. You two sit in the back of his car, pressed together as Jihoon presses kisses to your face every few minutes. You’re not much better though, leaning into him with a dopey grin on your face, ready to start your new life with the man you love the most.

The next time you see Jihoon isn’t at the antique shop at all. You’re getting coffee at the cafe next to your apartment when you see the man walk in. His eyes light up a bit when he sees you and he makes a beeline to your table after getting his drink.

“Is this seat open?” He asks, pointing to the empty chair across from you.

“Of course.”

Jihoon takes a seat before turning his attention to you. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“Maybe it’s fate,” you say teasingly but Jihoon just grins.

“Maybe it is,” his voice is smooth as he talks, and your breath gets caught in your throat, “I mean, I wouldn’t be upset if I was destined to meet you over and over again.”

You break his gaze, trying not to show him how flustered you are. “You’re quite the sweet talker you know? You don’t know anything about me-”

“No, but I don’t think it would be hard to learn. I’m starting to think we’re not really strangers at all. You can’t tell me that you aren’t a bit interested in me as well.”

You glance back at Jihoon to find him staring intently at him. His eyes are warm and deep and you can feel yourself being drawn in, like you’ve stared at those eyes a million times before. There’s an inviting sense to all of Jihoon and the only thing you can think of to describe it as is home. 

“Okay,” you tell him with a slight grin. “Let’s see if destiny is right.”

And really you don’t care if it is fate or not, because as you and Jihoon fall into a comfortable conversation you realize that the two of you meeting was no mistake, and that you could definitely love Lee Jihoon for multiple lifetimes. 

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[queenjunothegreat]

Go For It, Jason!!

Excerpt from an abandoned HS AU

“Percy,” Jason hissed, clutching Percy’s hand tight in his own. “I do not got this!”

“Yes, you do!” Percy hissed back. “All you have to do is tell Piper and Leo that we’re having a little party at our place this weekend, and Annabeth suggested inviting them. It’s super easy, you just have to be normal.”

“‘Be normal!’ What kind of advice is that!?”

“It’s advice you obviously need on a daily basis!”

Jason groaned and slid down one of the sets of lockers. “This was such a bad idea,” he whined. “I can just go back to being obsessed with him from afar, right? I don’t actually have to talk to him.”

“So you admit it? You’re obsessed with him?”

“Obviously I’m obsessed with him, Percy! I drew our joint tombstone!”

Percy heaved a deep sigh and slid down the lockers to sit while Jason pulled his knees up to his chest and hid his face in them. He was suddenly reminded of when he and Percy were in elementary school and Percy had gotten in trouble for punching another kid who wouldn’t leave Jason alone during “egg time.” He pressed his face harder into his knees and tried to ignore the way he wanted to cry a little bit. He wasn’t a baby.

“Look, man,” Percy said gently after a few moments of silence, “I’m not going to sit here and tell you you’ve got to talk to him. Because you don’t. If you wanna just have a crush on this guy for the rest of the year without telling him then move on to college and find someone else to dump all your weird obsessive tendencies on, you totally can. People ignore high school crushes literally every day. It’s probably the most normal thing about you.” Jason snorted and he could hear the smirk Percy gave in reply. “If you really don’t wanna do this, I’m not gonna make you. It’s your call, Jace.”

“Thanks,” Jason mumbled into his knees.

“Buuuuuuut…” Jason groaned loudly, and Percy snickered. “I do think it’s a good idea. I mean, what have you got to lose? Either they say yes, you convince Leo to fall in love with you and you live happily ever after; they say yes, it turns out Leo isn’t your type at all once you get to know him, and you just move on; or they say no and you have a perfectly valid excuse to go back to your stalker status.”

“I’m pretty sure there’s more than just three outcomes,” Jason pointed out. “What if they just laugh at me?”

“Then I’ll kick their asses,” Percy scowled. “They can fuck right off if they’re going to act like that.”

“Thanks, man,” Jason smiled softly, leaning forward to headbutt Percy on the shoulder.

“So, what’s the plan?” Percy asked casually. “You want me to stick around here while you talk to them, or you wanna head to the cafeteria? I think I overheard one of the Stolls say that they had churros today.”

Jason considered that. He did really like churros. He shook his head. “Let’s get this done and we’ll get churros after.”

“You got it, bro.”

Jason stood, and led the way into the library over to where Piper and Leo had commandeered a pair of bean bag chairs and were building a very impressive house of cards out of an Uno deck. Apparently, Jason’s arrival shifted the airflow just slightly, and the house came tumbling down while Piper and Leo both swore at it in a fun mix of English, Spanish, and French. Jason winced. “Uh, sorry. My bad. I think.” Piper and Leo both looked up at him, wide-eyed and blinked. Obviously, they hadn’t noticed Jason’s approach. He smiled awkwardly and lifted a hand to wave. “Uh, hi.”

Leo scoffed and rolled his eyes and exchanged a look with Piper. “I got this, Beauty Queen.”

“Of course you do,” she hummed, rolling her eyes.

Before Jason could ask what they meant, Leo was on his feet, arms folded across his chest and giving Jason a very unimpressed once-over. “Look. Blondie. No, not Blondie. Superman? Yeah, I like Superman.”

“My name’s Jason.”

“Uh, sure. Okay. Anyway. Superman. She’s not interested.”

Jason felt his eyebrows knit together. “She’s not interested in what?”

“In you. Duh,” Leo scoffed. “I know someone who looks like you probably doesn’t hear that often.”

“I’m… confused.”

“Of course you are.” For some reason, Leo looked incredibly irritated, but Jason still wasn’t sure what he did wrong. “Look, I don’t know how much more plainly I can put it. She. Doesn’t. Want. To. Date. You.”

“Oh.” Jason blinked and cocked his head to the side. “That’s fine.”

At once, all the wind fell out of Leo’s sails, and now he was the one who looked confused. “That’s… fine?”

“Yeah, I don’t wanna date her either.” His eyes widened and he looked at Piper apologetically. “No offense. You seem nice, and you’re very pretty. Whoever you do want to date is probably very lucky.”

Piper snorted, but she was smiling, so it didn’t seem mean. “Thanks, Jason.”

Jason smiled widely at her, but Leo just looked even more baffled. “Then… what are you doing over here?”

“I did actually come to invite her to a party,” he admitted. “Both of you, actually.”

“A… party?”

“Well, kind of,” Jason said hesitantly. “The apartment complex Percy and I live in opened up the pool for summer last weekend, so we were inviting our friends over. Annabeth suggested that the two of you might want to come.”

Leo’s eyes widened, and he turned furiously on Piper. “You know Annabeth?” he hissed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because it’s none of your business,” Piper told him, sticking out her tongue. 

“If I had known he had a mutual friend with you, maybe I wouldn’t have been a dick to him.” As if his own words just registered, Leo winced and ducked his head, looking up at Jason through his lashes. “Uh, sorry about that. By the way.”

Jason took a moment to reset his brain after it got fried, then smiled at Leo. “It’s cool, man. You were just looking out for your friend. I get that. I think it’s sweet.”

“You think it’s sweet. Cool. Coolcoolcool. I’m gonna go play in traffic now.”

Jason tipped his head back and laughed, probably louder than he should, but he couldn’t help it. He grinned so wide his eyes were squinting up, which made looking at Leo harder than it needed to be, which wasn’t ideal, but, once again, he couldn’t help it. “Please don’t. You’re probably going to traumatize the poor cars.”

“Nah, don’t worry, I’m too small to get hit by cars. I just lay down, and they pass right over me.”

Jason folded his hand over his mouth to at least somewhat muffle his giggles. “A very impressive skill.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m a special boy and all that.”

“I can imagine.”

Leo immediately turned bright red, and Piper tagged in, letting him hide his entire torso under a bean bag chair instead of talking more. She grinned at Jason. “So. You said there was a party? Where at?”

“Mine and Percy’s place,” Jason said distractedly, still observing Leo’s attempts to become one with the rug. “We’re over at Sunset on the Waves. There’s a subway station right across the street from us.”

“I think I know it. It’s over kinda close to Central Park, right?”

“Yeah, that’s it,” Jason said. “We’re all getting together Saturday around two, if you think you can make it.”

“We’ll definitely be there,” Piper agreed. “Do we need to bring anything?”

Jason shook his head. “Nah, we’ve got it. Just show up whenever.”

“Cool.” Piper turned and kicked Leo in the ankle. “Tell Jason thanks for inviting us out. Now we have an excuse to not watch those dumb soap operas with my mom.”

“Thanks, Superman,” Leo said, though his voice was muffled, almost indistinguishable, by the bean bag chair.

“Thanks for agreeing,” Jason replied earnestly. “Uh, I’ve got to go, though. The librarian kind of hates me.”

“You are a lot louder than you probably realize,” Piper agreed, then winced. “Sorry, that came out way meaner than I meant it to. You’re just a loud guy. It’s cool. I like it. Leo’s also super loud. You match.”

“Cool,” Jason agreed, consciously trying to lower his volume, which made Piper snicker at him. He grinned at them and waved. “See you this weekend.”

“See you!” Piper and Leo chimed in perfect unison at his retreating  back.

When he finally made it back to Percy’s side, he groaned and yanked his shirt up over his head. “Okay, I did it.”

“How did it go? They don’t look like they’re laughing. Well, actually, I think Piper is laughing, maybe.”

“Pretty sure she’s laughing at Leo,” Jason told him. “And it could have definitely gone… worse? They agreed to come.”

“Nice! That’s great, dude!”

“Leo did try to intimidate me out of asking Piper on a date, though.”

Percy snorted so hard it sounded like it hurt. “Well, he definitely doesn’t have to worry about that.”

Jason finally decided to emerge from his shirt so that he could grin at Percy. “Yeah. Tell me about it.”

Percy clapped a hand down on his shoulder. “I’m really proud of you, dude.”

“Thanks.” Jason took a moment to just bask in the praise before he frowned and tilted his head to the side. “Percy, am I loud?” Percy barked out a bright, friendly laugh. “Dude, you are so loud. Come on. Let’s go get some churros.”

[suzukiblu]

WIP excerpt for Marina; Tucker is having a normal one. (( chrono || non-chrono ))

So yeah, definitely coffee, Tucker decides. Sam'll catch up, again. Which–also again, right now they're probably the ones who need to catch up to her, considering. Her and the Fenton Anti-Creep Stick, specifically. Tucker always misses the Fenton Anti-Creep Stick when it’s not on deck, but he seriously misses it when it’s not on deck in situations like these. 

“So yeah, fyi, while we’re doing the running thing we gotta find my backup, she’s somewhere in the hall out there being a badass,” Tucker informs his hopeful weekend plans, pointing towards the door. “And possibly also our other friend, who she and I were looking for when we found you. So like, it’s very interesting, actually, that they were keeping you where they would’ve kept him, all things considered.” 

Very interesting. And probably concerning? Like, considering? 

. . . also possibly hot, though, Tucker realizes. Like, he’s very into situations like Sam going full anti-creep stick on the GIW and Jazz yelling down murderous ghosts and literally everything Val has ever done in her entire life, so if he’s more bisexual than previously assumed and this dude is, like, some kind of terrifying badass ecto-experiment with weird ghost powers or whatever, statistically speaking, Tucker is probably gonna be into that. And like, given the batshit sedative doses Tucker pulled and how quick the guy woke up and also the whole, like, literal flying thing, “weird ghost powers” seems pretty likely at this point. 

Well, forewarned is forearmed, he guesses. At least if Allegedly-Alive Amor is secretly some kind of dangerous anti-ghost weapon, Tucker’s gonna get to enjoy the experience of watching him get beat down by Danny. Like, as soon as they find Danny, he means. And also–

. . . actually, is it weirder that Tucker kinda wants to see this guy get a little messed up, now that he’s thinking about it? Like just in a minimally violent but definitively rumpled kind of way, maybe, or like, maybe kinda flushed and sweaty and out of breath and–

They should find Ecto-Babe some pants, Tucker decides privately, patting the guy’s chest in an attempt to distract himself and doing the actual exact literal opposite of distracting himself. 

Yeah, pants would be a good idea right now. 

Pants, fortunately–unfortunately, Tucker means–do not actually happen, because what actually happens is the guy takes off and zips out into the hall with Tucker all bridal style/princess carry in his wet, naked arms, and Tucker really needs to have a moment about that but definitely does not have the time to. Another reason to rip the security footage later, though, he figures as he types furiously at his PDA, making sure all his programs are still running in the GIW’s systems and showing the agents all the fake ghosts a Fenton could shake an anti-creep stick at. 

Probably he doesn’t actually need to check that, though, since they don’t make it through thirty yards of this surprisingly comfy high-speed flying experience before they’re coasting quick and easy over the heads of a hallway full of yelling and screaming agents who’re shooting each other more than any of the ghosts said agents think they’re seeing. 

That’s really unfortunate for them, gee. Tucker will have to send ‘em a “get well never, you xenophobic assholes” card. Maybe a fruit basket. One with nothing but cantaloupe in it, because the GIW deserves nothing but cantaloupe. Old cantaloupe, even. Like just old enough they’ll feel like they have to eat it before it spoils outright, but also the texture’ll be weird and–

“Uh, should we be worried about all that back there?” New Ecto-Boo asks, looking skeptically back at the GIW agents they’ve already passed–and also looking really fucking hot, still.

[elfven-blog]

What if ... Leon was dating a tarot reader? And he always makes jokes like "if she reads this on the cards I'm screwed" And he pretends he doesn't care (but he's actually scared to death when the reader reads the cards to him)

Hi anon! I hope you enjoy!! 💕

The past, the present and the future

Leon Kennedy X Reader Word count:787

You rolled your eyes, shuffling the deck in your hand as you listened to Leon make yet another quip “Should I be worried? Don’t use them to check up on me” His brows were raised but the grin on his face was enough to let you know he was only messing. But the shake of his leg told another story, his knee bouncing up and down as he cracked another joke, this one about the devil card. You only shook your head.

After finishing the deck shuffle, you placed the cards down on the table. In a three-card spread, Leon had finally agreed to have you give him a reading. Something simple he said, no weird questions or anything like that. So, he decided to go with what he knows best. Bioterrorism.

“You ready, honey?” You didn’t want to push him into something he didn’t want to do but it could be a fun little moment, and it’s not like he had to listen to them. It’s not like he really believed what the cards said, and this was perfect practice for you anyway. You were sick of asking yourself questions, it was nice to do a reading for someone else. Leon nodded, you could have sworn you heard the man gulp and watched as his tongue darted out to wet his lips.

As you turned the first card over, the past, you watched Leons brow furrow as he looked at the card. His voice tilted with confusion “A building?” His head leant to the side as he moved his attention back to your face.

“The tower. Upright like this means disaster, broken pride” Leon nodded slowly, he felt his mouth go dry and his mind wondered back to that dark night so many years ago. He could almost feel the rain soaking through his uniform, the bandages sticking to the blood on his skin…the stench of rotting bodies all over again. Your soft voice pulls him out of those thoughts “Hey, its okay, we can stop” your hand is gentle on his as you lean across the table. His moves to cover yours before he presses a kiss to your fingers.

“No no, I’m kind of excited…Wanna see what my future holds according the spooky forces beyond” you can tell the way his voice has lowered and the non-existent spark that’s been wiped from his eyes that he’s a little worried. He wasn’t expecting it to be so accurate. Definitely wasn’t expecting a Raccoon City Incident cameo from the cards.

But with his go ahead you moved on to the ‘present’ card, flipping it over to show the word reversed” This time you tilted your own head, this made sense. Even know after so many years, and with Leon having moved on to start a relationship with you, there was still part of him that felt like some things weren’t resolved. “World reversed, incompletion and no closure”.

Leon felt his body tense, the cards were getting too close for comfort for his liking. He didn’t understand how they could be so accurate. The jokes and quips dying on his tongue as his mind raced. “Well, if this is how its going, I think I’ve got a bleak future” the joke was weak and you could tell he was starting to panic. He shifted in his seat, hands wiping the sweat onto his jeans as he watched you flip the last card over.

“Oh my god, am I gonna die?” You couldn’t help yourself, a short laugh left your mouth and Leon looked at you with wide eyes, his mouth gaping open. You shook your head trying to collect your composure as Leon stared at you in shock.

When you finally stopped laughing and could get more than a few words out you explained to him “No, the card of death doesn’t mean that you’re gonna die. It’s good actually, in the upright position it stands for new beginnings and changes” Your hand squeezed his own, and you leant forward to press a kiss to his cheek.

 Leon let a breath of relief, his forehead falling onto your shoulder. His arms moved around your waist, and he hoisted you over the table and settled you into his lap. His face still buried into your neck as he pressed a few kisses to the pulse point there. “I like that one…a new beginning with my sweet tarot partner” You could feel the heat of his breath against your skin “But never do a reading for me again”.

Another laugh left you, your hands running through his hair “Okay, my love, no more readings for the big strong government agent” This time it was your turn to tease him.

[mcntsee]

Skillful deception

Summary: Y/n and Kaz bond over magic tricks.

Warnings: I’d say ooc but we all know kaz is a nerd when it comes to magic tricks. Also, I explained how two sleight of hand tricks work. The pen vanish, which Kaz performs during season two of Shadow and bone (pic above) and, raise rise, a famous sleight of hand trick. So if you don’t want to know how those two work, I recommended skipping this fic.

Note: If you wanna learn any of the tricks, the vanishing pen trick is easy and there’s a lot of tutorials out there. It only requires practice and angles. For Raise rise, the creator is selling the “tutorial”. It’s not very expensive, and in my opinion it’s worth it and a really good party trick.

As the sound of shuffling cards filled the dimly lit room, Kaz Brekker sat across from y/n, his eyes trained on her hands with a curious glint. He had always admired her dexterity, but little did he know that her skill went beyond mere nimbleness of fingers. Y/n had kept her abilities as a magician hidden from the entire crew of the Dregs, including the infamous Kaz Brekker.

"What trick are you going to show me today, Kaz?" y/n asked, her voice tinged with playful anticipation.

Kaz smirked, a mischievous glimmer dancing in his eyes. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pen, holding it up for y/n to see. "Today, I'll teach you a little trick I learned when I was younger. It's a classic, really."

He demonstrated, swiftly flicking his wrists, causing the pen to disappear. With a sly smile, he slowly opened his hand, revealing an empty palm. "See? The pen vanishes right before your eyes."

Y/n chuckled softly, her fingers tracing an invisible pattern on the cards on the table. "Ah, yes. I remember when I first learned that trick. Although, I’ll admit, I couldn’t quite get the pen to flick back correctly for a while. I kept using to much strength and the pen kept flying off."

Kaz raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued. "Is that so? I've never heard you mention your interest in magic before."

She shrugged casually. "Well, I suppose everyone has their secrets, don't they? But since we're sharing tricks, how about I show you one I've perfected?"

Intrigued, Kaz leaned back, giving her the stage. Y/n picked up the deck of cards she was previously playing with and shuffled them in a skilled and professional manner, the movements fluid and precise. Once satisfied with the shuffle, she held the deck in her hand and took the card from the top, showing it to Kaz.

"Well, that's not a very good trick," Kaz commented, feigning disappointment.

Y/n chuckled, her laughter filling the room. As she laughed, she carefully placed the card in the middle of the deck, allowing a portion of it to stick out just enough for Kaz to see its position. She then proceeded to make a cut between the card sticking out and the bottom of the deck, so the card sticking out could be at the bottom and not the middle.

Undeterred, y/n began flicking her wrist upward, each motion causing the card to move incrementally higher within the deck. Kaz's eyes widened as he observed the impossible, the card rising through the deck as if defying gravity. Y/n's fingers danced with practiced precision, the card inching its way to the top.

With a triumphant smile, y/n revealed the top of the deck, showcasing the returned card. "Ta-da! The card has returned to its original place."

Kaz stared in awe, his skepticism replaced with fascination. "How did you do that?" he asked, his voice filled with wonder.

A coy smile played on y/n's lips as she uttered the words Kaz himself often used. "A good magician..." y/n started "...never reveals their secrets," Kaz finished, his admiration for her talent growing with each passing moment.

Y/n continued to amaze Kaz, showcasing an array of tricks with cards, coins, and even small objects she made disappear and reappear at will. Each time, Kaz marveled at her finesse, the way she effortlessly deceived the eye and brought wonder into the room.

As the evening wore on, y/n and Kaz shared their hidden magic tricks, delighting in the joy they found in these illusions. The bond between them deepened, their shared secrets and the enchantment of their tricks creating a connection unlike any other.

“You really want to know how the Raise Rise trick works, Brekker?” Y/n waited for a couple second for Kaz to either deny or accept the offer. After a quick nod from the man himself, she held the deck in her hand and began to explain the Raise Rise trick.

“Ok then, this is how the trick works,” y/n began, her voice filled with excitement. “First, I’ll show you the top card, just like before. After showing it to you, I’ll place it in the middle of the deck, sticking out slightly, so we can keep track of its position.”

Kaz nodded, his eyes fixed on y/n’s every move.

“Next, watch closely,” y/n continued. “As I perform a cut, I’ll be carefully switching the position of the card sticking out with the one below it. This allows the original selected card to move back to the top of the deck while the switched card is now the one sticking out.”

With a swift motion, y/n performed the cut, executing the subtle switch seamlessly but slowly so he could see what she was talking about. Kaz’s eyes focused intently, trying to catch any hint of the sleight of hand.

“Now, every time I flick my wrist, my thumb pushes out a new card to stick out, while my index finger makes the previous card go back in,” y/n explained. “The key is to execute these movements quickly and smoothly, ensuring that the switch is imperceptible to the audience’s eyes.”

With practiced finesse, y/n flicked her wrist, causing the card to rise slightly. She repeated the motion, each flick elevating the card higher within the deck. The illusion of the card defying gravity took hold, captivating Kaz’s attention.

“You see, Kaz,” y/n said, her voice filled with satisfaction. “By swiftly alternating the movement of the cards, I can create the illusion of the selected card rising through the deck until it reaches the top again, even though it has been there for some time now.”

Kaz’s awe and admiration were evident on his face as he watched the mesmerizing display.

“Now it’s your turn, Kaz,” y/n said, handing him the deck. “Give it a try.”

Kaz accepted the deck, feeling a mix of excitement and determination. He observed y/n’s graceful movements, committing them to memory. Holding the deck in his hands, he prepared himself to execute the trick.

With a flick of his wrist, Kaz revealed the top card to y/n, mirroring her earlier demonstration. However, as he attempted the cut, his gloved fingers fumbled, causing the cards to slip from his grasp and scatter across the table.

Undeterred, Kaz let out a frustrated grunt and gathered the scattered cards, determined to try again. He meticulously reshuffled the deck, his focus unwavering. Once more, he lifted the top card to show y/n and attempted the cut. But once again, his fingers failed to execute the maneuver with the necessary finesse.

A sense of disappointment gnawed at Kaz as he made several more attempts, each one resulting in failure. The smooth flow of the trick eluded him, and he let out a long sigh of frustration, finally giving up.

Y/n reached out and slightly placed a comforting hand on Kaz’s gloved one, her voice filled with empathy. “It’s alright, Kaz. The cut can be challenging, even for the most skilled magicians. It takes time and practice. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”

After that night, Kaz spent weeks practicing tirelessly. He analyzed every failed attempt, dissecting the intricacies of his movements and making subtle adjustments. The deck became an extension of his being as he honed his skill, his gloved fingers growing increasingly deft.

One night, as the moon cast a silvery glow upon the city, Kaz burst into y/n’s room, his expression a mix of exhilaration and triumph. “Y/n, I’ve done it! I can finally perform the trick!”

Y/n’s eyes widened with anticipation, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. “Show me, Kaz.”

With a calm yet purposeful demeanor, Kaz picked up a deck of cards and expertly shuffled them. His gloved hands moved with a newfound grace and precision, a testament to the weeks of relentless practice. The deck seemed an extension of his being as he held it steady.

As he lifted the top card to show y/n, a spark of excitement danced in his eyes. He carefully placed the card in the middle of the deck, executing the cut flawlessly. With a flick of his wrist, he initiated the sequence of movements, each one executed with absolute control.

Card after card rose and fell with seamless fluidity, defying the laws of gravity as if dancing to an otherworldly rhythm. Kaz’s fingers moved with practiced elegance, every flick and shift executed with unyielding precision. And then, in a crescendo of astonishment, the selected card resurfaced at the top of the deck.

Y/n applauded, her voice filled with genuine admiration. “Kaz, you’ve done it! You’ve mastered the Raise Rise trick!”

A sense of accomplishment washed over Kaz as he met y/n’s gaze, his usually stoic expression softened by a proud smile. “Have you got any other incredibly hard tricks for me to learn, y/n?”

As y/n took the cards from his gloved hand, she said “this is called Ascanio Spread”

[1-danid]

(pt2) dating teen vi

dating arc one vi part two, you have both aged up to arc two!

part 1 here! Go read it love!

You worked at the bar almost for the most part of your job.

You get a lot of gossip and news whilst bartending, it’s shocking what people will tell a pretty bartender when they're drunk.

You're much better of a bartender than Thieram, bless him. And he sees you as a really good friend because Jinx doesn’t scare him as much when you're around.

Not you literally being everyone’s favourite.

Also you 100% get free drinks when you're at the bar, like Silco loves you enough to let you get that free booze.

You're Silco's inside man or woman in this case I guess.

If you're not busy as a bartender you’d 100% be Sevika’s go to dealer for any game she plays.

You don’t even have a choice she's dragging you with her and shoving a deck of cards in your hands.

If she wins shell get you something the next time she's out, if she loses its your fault (she's just a real sore loser and wants you to cheat in her favour)

You're 100% a fair dealer, but when Sevika wins almost every round people get angry at you for cheating. Sevika would beat them up for messing with you.

You're like a daughter to her, and even though she doesn’t show it all the time. SHe cares about you a lot more than Jinx. When you're not working the bar, you're definitely patching up Jinx.

Speaking of Jinx always comes to you for comfort and reassurance as you're the only family she has left, even though Powder died.

You've stuck with her and she appreciates it.

Jinx has improved so much and you're proud of her, and believe it or not you feel like you found another family with her and Silco.

Sometimes you'll cook dinners and bake treats for them when you're off, getting Markcus to buy you the supplies you need as you play with his daughter in Piltover.

He won't admit it but he's more petrified of you than Silco and Jinx combined.

You don't like to go on glimmer mission, they remind you of your old life but on the occasion that Jinx can convince you to go.

You're still a badass, even though you stick to defensive attacks (you could never hurt Ekko.) You're still a force to be reckoned with.

Sevika is much nicer to you than she is to Jinx, but that is likely because of your maturity and you never climbed on her back when she had to babysit you.

When Vi meets Caitlyn in prison, she recognises your initials on one of "Powder's" drawings.

Poor girl has only thought of you and her sister, in all her time in Stillwater she's realised that she loves you and she wanted to find you and tell you that.

So when Caitlyn gives her an opportunity to leave she takes it, if only to know that you and Powder are alive.

We all know Vi is a flirt and she does flirt with Caitlyn, the cupcake scene is a canon event. So when one of your girlfriends sees Vi she waits to see who this pretty girl is with her.

You get news of Vi before Jinx and Silco and leave on your own to clear your head, as your ex lover is proclaimed to be alive.

You're overcome with emotions like jealousy, heartbreak, fear and most of all anger (covers your sadness).

How could she be okay without you, you could barely go a day without thinking of her and the good times how could she move on? Why would she move on and forget about you?

However Jinx took you out of your hole of self pity and wallowing, and asks you to come find Vi with her. It's at that moment you remember the torch and agree, travelling to the top of Zaun to light the torch.

Throughout this Vi had fought Sevika, who was taunting her about how you and Jinx had moved on from her, (we don't talk about your last fling, it was embarrassing.) As Vi is about to be beaten, Caitlyn saves her and then continues to flirt, slowly but surely more and more people hear about Vi's reappearance.

However when you and Jinx light the torch you have hope. Vi was never one to break a promise and if it was to Powder at least.

You stood there anxious as you watches all the fuel dry up and burn from the flare torch.

You just needed to know if she was alive or dead, to know if she cared about you and her own sister.

You needed to know if she had replaced you.

A/N

And that’s where I'm ending this part! I have no idea if i'll make another part but that one anon gave me motivation for this. So here you guys go. Sorry if it's all over the place, I need to rewatch Arcane. It's a bit rusty in my head. I swear I'm working on my atsv requests. I just had this in the works for longer. Hope you enjoyed be sure to leave comments and reblog it!

Next fic publishing will be after i finish updating my wattpad book. No you will not get a link to my wattpad account.

[vampiricmycelium]

Day #2 of @redscapeweek || Magic Trick || T

Just some cute fluff for the boys.

-

"Alright, are you paying attention?"

"You have my full attention Scar. Go on."

Scar flashed a bright smile at Mumbo. He had come over to Scarland to see what Scar was up to. These days it was either working on finishing Scarland or he would be over at Decked Out. Today seemed to be different. When Scar saw Mumbo he excited pulled him over to a bench and had him sit down.

Mumbo was not one to deny Scar as long as whatever he was doing wasn't too dangerous. The whole prank war with Doc was not that far in the past. Even though that ended up being pretty fun. Magic tricks felt right up Scar's alley. Surely, this wasn't the first time he had done this. Even so, Mumbo was Scar's captive audience.

Scar placed a block of iron down and then looked at Mumbo. "You see this iron before you? It's completely real. No tricks or anything. Just iron."

"It does just look like iron."

"Now watch carefully."

Scar wiggled his fingers at Mumbo before pulling out a red cloth. He draped it over the block and then rapped on it three times. When he pulled the cloth away, the iron block had transformed. Instead, it was a block of diamond.

"Oh wow! Hold on, did you really transform iron to diamond?" Mumbo got up and examined the block closely. Scar stood to the side, beaming with pride and smugness. Mumbo frowned as he tried to find a way that Scar could have pulled this off. Some kind of redstone contraption? The moment Mumbo pulled out his pickaxe, though, Scar raised his hands.

"Hey! No breaking my streets. You don't want to ruin the illusion of the magic."

"But you did build something-"

Scar pressed a finger against Mumbo's lips to stop him. He pulled back a little, his face turning a light shade of pink.

"What did I just say? Come on Mumbo. Just enjoy it!"

Mumbo nodded and sat back down. He wasn't sure if Scar had anything else he wanted to show him, but he wanted to stick around. Maybe let himself believe in the magic Scar was performing.

He did continue to perform tricks for Mumbo. A couple of card tricks and then pulling gold from behind Mumbo's head. Once he stopped trying to understand how these things were possible, Mumbo found himself excited to see what Scar did next. Perhaps some of that was Scar's own charisma. After all, Scar was something of a con man, constantly looking for a way to pull one over. His performance was enrapturing. Mumbo found himself slightly fawning over his friend.

Scar's next trick involved him turning a wooden stick into a bouquet of flowers, offering them over to Mumbo with a smile and wink. Now his face was a brighter pink, spreading to his ears. Scar chuckled, pleased to have flustered him.

"You know you'd be a great assistant. You're pretty enough for it."

"Would I have to dress up in those ridiculous outfits?"

"Why of course! You have to play the part correctly."

Mumbo was blushing just thinking about it. And thinking about Scar thinking of him in a scantily clad outfit. My, what was his mind doing today?

"I'll have to pass on that."

"What a shame." Scar really did sound like it was a shame, and that almost made Mumbo change his mind. Almost. But he couldn't do it. He'd melt the moment anyone saw him from embarrassment.

"I have one more trick to perform for you. But I'll need you to close your eyes for this one."

"You're not going to blow me up or anything, right?"

"No. You can trust me."

"I don't know about that all the time Scar." He was trustworthy. When he wanted to be. And Mumbo did trust him more than the average Hermit. Whatever he was going to do, it was probably going to be fine. They were in the middle of Scar's base. He wasn't just going to destroy any of his hard work for a prank.

Right?

Mumbo closed his eyes. He waited for Scar to do something or say something. There was nothing for a moment. Then he thought he felt Scar get close to him. He took on of Mumbo's hands and helped him stand up. Then he cleared his throat before pressing something against Mumbo's mouth. Was Scar kissing him? It felt soft against his lips. Kind of earthy in a way. It moved against his mouth, and Mumbo nearly pressed back into it. He heard Scar chuckle again, further away than where he thought he was.

"Expecting something else?"

Mumbo opened his eyes to see a rose in front of his face. His eyes went wider, fighting hard not to blush, but failing.

"Scar!"

Scar was still laughing, looking far too pleased with him. "Well Mumbo that was my final trick. Seems you feel for it." Scar winked. But before Mumbo could say anything, he leaned forward and kissed Mumbo on the cheek. "Enough your flowers. See you later."

Scar left as quickly as he could. Luckily, Mumbo was stunned for long enough for him to make an escape. Mumbo touched his lips, wanting to shout at Scar for what happened.

But he really did wish that Scar had kissed him.

[vitaminseetarot]

Full Blue Supermoon PAC Pick a Flower: How Are You Blooming? 🧡🌸🌹💜

Hello folks and welcome back to the next chapter of my moon series, all about growing your intention over the month! I had some crazy weather and managed to get both moonrain and moonwater. The moon was SO BRIGHT outside I even attempted (poorly) to read a book underneath it. If there's collective advice I can give for all four piles, it's to get some extra sleep lol especially when full moons this bright can disrupt our schedules.

As a ritual option, if you do gather moonwater, you can consecrate it to your intent via drinking or bathing. Imagine that you're watering that which is now ready to come into full bloom. The water energy will be particularly potent since it's in the tropical sign of Pisces. It's an energy that can receive powerful insights from dreams and visions so long as one's channels are properly cleansed and cleared. If you're an artist this is a great full moon for finding a good creative idea to work with throughout the rest of the year.

Pick one of the three flowers below to find out how your seed is now flowering to its full potential during this Superbloom! Pictures provided from flowers growing in my own house and yard. Divider from @animatedglittergraphics-n-more.

1, Orange Daylily - 2, Mauve Musk Mallow

3, Scarlet Bee Balm - 4, African Violet

Pile 1: Orange Daylily

Five of Swords, Eight of Pentacles, Two of Cups, IX Hermit, King of Cups New Moon Eclipse - Expect Powerful Change, Virgo Moon - Trust, Everlasting Daisy - Fortitude

This tarot deck, I swear! Almost every time I use it, this frightening five of swords pops out. I used to gasp, but now I'm like "really, again?" Maybe that's a metaphor for your reading, pile 1. Big changes are on the horizon and you're shocked and overwhelmed and don't know what you're doing--relax, it's all going to be fine.

You are blooming through persistence. No matter what silly, inane situation or conflict you find yourself in, you have shown that it pays to stick to your vision and keep pushing through no matter what. It's become like a personal compass for you, leading you where you need to go when things on the outside become too confusing to mess with. You know scenes in shows where a bunch of people are fighting over something like a coveted treasure, then you see that one person in the background is quietly making their getaway with the treasure. If the others fighting could stop and think for a second, they'd realize that you're already several steps ahead of them.

I felt the Hermit card long before I even pulled it, so the general advice here is as simple as: keep doing what you're doing! You may not see where you want to be right now but you're success will be guaranteed once you've made it. You're being asked to trust in the process for now. If you need to hide yourself away in order to focus, then keep doing it. You need to be mindful with how you spend your energy, and petty quarrels are the biggest energy drains. Getting too many other minds involved in the process is only going to bog you down, and not with cranberries. There's already a lot going on, so give yourself chances to disconnect.

Eventually, you'll be able to reconnect again, from a healthier place. Isolation is meant to help you, not remain a staple feature in your life. Sometimes we have to step away from people in order to enjoy the time spent with them again. Absence makes the heart fonder and all that. Your sense of light and joy is the key here. Does being alone make you feel more at ease, or does spending time with someone you care about? Daylily is named for their flowers which only bloom for one day before falling away. Orange Daylily is especially optimistic. It's asking you to take it one day at a time. A day for this, a day for that.

Soon, you will come to a place where you can feel more emotionally centered and your boat won't get rocked so easily. King of Cups isn't a rock, he lets himself feel tenderly and passionately, he lets others feel before him, but he doesn't let those feelings consume or overwhelm him. Don't be in a pressure to be that kind of person at the moment. You don't have to act emotionally above it all, or like you're only there to absorb the conflict. You can be King of Cups for your own sake, when you're ready to handle it. For now, quiet persistence is one way you can create emotional boundaries while you're undergoing shifts in your life.

Pile 2: Mauve Musk Mallow

Six of Wands, X Wheel of Fortune, I Magician, Eight of Cups, XIII Death Full Moon Aquarius - Show the World the Real You, Libra Moon - Sympathise, Gardenia - Awareness

I really liked the initial energy of this pile. You must have done something right! Because of your particular talents, and staying true to yourself as well, you were able to accomplish something that would have seemed impossible ages ago. It's like you're striking lucky somewhere in your life. I sense whatever this luck was varies so much because I'm not getting details as to what. The focus seems to be more on your sudden boost of confidence. It may begin to feel like things are finally starting to work out in your favor.

You are blooming through serendipity. This chance will spark a light in you to have more fun with your life. The Musk Mallow can represent playfulness, but mallow plants are notorious for their soothing capabilities. It's offering relief on the pressure valve a little so you can come back into balance with yourself again. However, this luck is not intended to last. It's there just enough to support and push you into a more positive direction, but it's not something to fall back on hoping there will no longer be worries. Allow yourself to enjoy the success but don't let it get to your head.

I think in order to receive this opportunity, you'll need to let go of something, maybe just for a little while like a break. It could be other opportunities that are tempting you or some blockage getting in the way. I get a sense for many of you that you may need to spend less time with certain people even if temporarily. This is in order to focus and allow the best possible outcome. The people you would be distancing will likely be people who don't support you or have the best intentions for your future. Don't entertain those who try to put you down for your successes. It may suck if this is a close friend or family member, but a true friend will stick around for you even if you suddenly get swept up in something good, even if you have to undergo radical change to make it possible.

Either way, I see you taking on this opportunity with a high chance for further success if you can keep your head in the game. Stay vigilant and don't rest now while the iron is still hot--strike! Take a moment to feel good about yourself without shame. It's okay to feel bad if some can't necessarily share with you in that success. It doesn't mean you have to let them drag you down with negative attitudes. You're doing your own thing, here.

Pile 3: Red Bee Balm

Ten of Pentacles (Rv), VI Lovers, Nine of Swords, XIV Temperance, Ten of Swords Third Quarter Moon - Adjustments Are Required, Aries Sun - Assert, Orange Blossom - Enthusiasm

This might be a specific message for some: are you planning to come out of the closet to anyone close to you, like family members? Or you could be disclosing a delicate secret to them about something like a choice you've recently made? Whatever it is, it has you feeling in a bit of a tangle. This is something that's been bugging you for a while and you're at the point where you're willing to step it up and change.

You are blooming through authenticity. You're coming into a place where you feel more real with yourself, and more aligned with your decisions. You're seeing yourself for who you are, with all the cultural and religious baggage at the side for now. Through that, you're able to expand your awareness on what it is you want out of life. Maybe you'd rather move than stay where you are, or change college majors, maybe you'd rather get a pet fish than a pet hamster. You have to know who you are to know what it is you want. Funny how it doesn't always work the other way around. Wants can be fickle but you're learning to balance the different perspectives.

If this choice means leaving behind values that have been passed down to you for ages, it may not necessarily be easy. It may not always involve stripping away it all. You don't have to throw the baby out with the bathwater, if you're just looking to give the child better soap. You can leave behind that which is only pulling you away from your authentic self. The rest is fluff. Tropical Aries Sun starts off spring season, reminding you that for every end you have the ability to create a new and better beginning with enthusiasm.

Be gentle with how you address this information to the outside. You may likely encounter opposition with your choices, especially those who would rather treat you like a child. Assertion is not the same as aggression, remember. We sometimes get caught up in our heads, believing everyone who's against us will always be fervently against us, which isn't always so. People can always change their minds and open up. It's not in your power to push them through that door, you can only keep the door open and point the signs in that direction. If they sting you, Bee Balm's medicine will be there with you, easing the pain and cheering you on for your commitment to yourself.

Pile 4: African Violet

Knight of Pentacles, Five of Cups, Queen of Pentacles, Eight of Cups (Rv.), Nine of Pentacles New Moon Cancer - You and Your Loved Ones Are Safe, Leo Sun - Create, Azalea - Temperance

Wherever it is in life you're focused on most, you've been diligently chipping away at it for some time. It feels like the right strike to hit gold is close. You're hoping that once you do, things will smooth out again and you can breathe. Every now and then, though, there comes a time where you have to stop where you are at in the present and breathe. As you do, notice everything going on around you and the amazing things currently at your table.

You are blooming through gratitude. It's not a typical message you get with the sad five of cups, but sometimes we have to look closely. The girl depicted clearly feels close to the seal, and they're able to bond over good times together even when dark uncertain times have crossed them. They're able to remember what was special, which any sadness on the surface can't erase. The two cups standing represent gratitude and hope. You're able to see that you've come a long way, and though there's much to still do, you can take the time to enjoy what you've accomplished so far. There's a bittersweet feeling to it, though, like you're not sure if you want to stop and mull for too much or you might feel too hard about what's been missed or left behind long ago.

Is there a worry over how loved ones around you might be reacting to your growth? This spread is signalling that you've already come so far, so there's no fret in slowing down and making time to spend with others. Family doesn't have to mean literal family, it refers to whomever you call "home". It could be your one dog and a studio apartment and I'd say "yes, take your dog on an extra walk today, not just cause they're a good dog but because you need this time to decompress and your dog wants to help you." Whether people in your life are under or over reacting, it doesn't have to affect your sense of gratitude for your progress. Maybe they're giving you no support for your efforts, or they're being overbearing to where you feel like they're actually pushing you away from what you're doing, but you're the Queen of Pentacles here, happily receiving from the Nine of Pentacles. The gratitude is in your mindset and how you approach it.

There's also one more separate advice, pile 4. Don't let your family discourage you from what you're making. Please don't toss away whatever it is you're working on now. Leo Sun wants you to be bold, open, and creatively expressive. Find a way to balance between working on it and getting feedback from everyone else. African Violets love that you care for family, but feels you could do without the smothering effect neglecting your growth. There's a time and a place for everything. Just make sure you're taking care of yourself in the meanwhile.

This reading has not been evaluated by the FDA to diagnose, prevent, treat, or cure any disease or infection. Please ask your physician before going online.

2023, @VitaminseeTarot ™

[prettynalilmagic]

ℙ𝕚𝕔𝕜 𝕒 ℂ𝕒𝕣𝕕 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕖𝕖 𝕨𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕞𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕒𝕘𝕖 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕟𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕥𝕠 𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕣

Hello beautiful bitches, here’s some messages you need to hear at this point. If it don’t resonate, don’t hate on me pls. Also the song recommendations are kinda random so dont judge me for that either. 

Pile 1

Cards : Nature Communication, All Must have prizes (r), Uncertainty (r), You Matter, Listen to Your heart, I’m Sorry, Love me, LET ME HAVE YOU, and Fuuuuccckkk. You need your people around you

(Alice and the Wonderland Oracle, the Hermit tarot, and the Rebel Deck) 

Hello pile 1, I got two different messages for two types of people. For the first one, I am made to believe that recently you have been having issues with someone. It could be family, friend or love related. The nature communication card is the one card that sticks out the most outta every other card, and that matters because the card goes and talks about when Alice from Alice in the Wonderland goes and talks to these beautiful, and quite harsh judgmental flowers. She does not expect for them to talk back to her, but they do, she had made a false assumption about the world she has found herself trapped in. Overall, I can see that you have been having issues and you may need to speak up for yourself. As for a while you have been trying to please someone and because of that you seem to have been someone who doesn’t really know who you are or feel like you can’t be who want to be because of these issues you have with this other person. You want this person to stay with you and love you but deep down you know that you haven’t seen any hope outta the other person. Your message is that you need to speak up for yourself, you are someone who is worthy of making an effort with. Not saying to leave whatever person you have issues with, because the other person may or may not know there even is an issue. Don’t focus on the possibility of you hurting other people's feelings, speak your mind and if shit hits the fan, seek comfort with your loved ones because you have people around you that care for you.

 And for the second one, I am getting that if you’re the one who has been creating issues with someone else that you love. You know deep down that you were being way too overwhelmingly judgmental and now you may not know what to do. As you can see that you made yourself look like someone else who isn’t a good representation of you. This person may have stood up for themselves and now you feel like you have fucked up. If you feel as though you have fucked up, your message is to apologize. It should be noted that just because you apologize to someone you have hurt does not erase the pain you have caused. An apology should be told to the person only if you mean it and are willing to work on fixing the issue at hand. 

Song Recommendations: I Love You so by The Walters, Sorry by Beyonce 

Pile 2

Cards: The Goat and the Willow (r), The Lizard and the Pitcher Plant, The Fox and the Ivy (r), The Bee and the Pomegranate, The Emperor, The Wheel of Fortune, My Life Started When I Met You, I Hope You’ll Wait For Me, I’m Too Afraid to talk

(Woodland Wardens Oracle, Tarot of the Divine, Hermit tarot) 

Good day/evening/night Pile 2, I can see that it feels as though you aren't overcoming life's obstacles thrown at you. You may also not even be aware that you are stuck in a place when you don’t have to be. You are clearly off balance and there a lot of feeling stuck energy here. However, you should understand that feelings are fleeting, even if you have been feeling stuck, unmotivated and/or depressed seemingly forever, that doesn't mean that you have to stay like that. The cards are all telling you that you need to figure out how to get out of your stagnation. You need to drop something that you are doing in order to overcome this period. And I feel as though, that perhaps you are almost unwilling to try to overcome it because you may have tried before and/or feel that you just are to afraid to ask for help from others. You may feel like you may not be able to overcome hardships on your own but also fear asking for help or that you won’t get help even if you asked so what’s the point. But here’s the thing, it doesn't hurt to ask, what’s the worst thing that could happen? And if you don’t need help, ask yourself what you need to do in order to become more stable and structured enough to the point where you are able to not become stagnant, when life gets hard. It could be that you also may be relying too much on the help of others too and that isn’t healthy in the same way not being able to ask for help is. If you need the extra help, ask for it but if you also need others to help you, codependency on others is an issue that keeps you stuck. That reason being that if there isn’t someone to cling to or point out your short comings, you may not know what to do when there isn't someone there. At some point you will be all you have, (and no I am not saying you will be alone forever) so make sure that you are able to get to the point where you will be okay when that happens. Ask yourself, what's stopping me? How can I overcome that? What makes me more balanced? What caused me to become outta balanced and how do I prevent that from happening?  

Side note, it takes a long time for someone to realize that they are unhappy and even longer for that person to realize that they don’t have to be unhappy. So, by no means should you feel like you are being judged, it happens to a lot of people. 

Song Recommendations: Ross- Manifest, Russ- Do it Myself, Ariana Grande- Just like Magic

Pile 3

Cards: The Sun (r), Justice, 4oS (r), 8oC,9oC, I am Terrified, I know you from Somewhere, Trove 

(Nicoletta Ceccoli Tarot, Hermit Tarot, Wild Child Oracle)

Hi pile three, so I am being told to tell you that there might be something like a blessing coming towards you. While with tarot cards i don’t necessarily predict the future, they help guide and lead you, but my cards are telling me that there’s a good chance of you getting something that you want, but you have to behave. Kinda like let's say you want to be to afford an expensive piece of clothing, if you want to properly save up for it, you would have to look at your monthly income, differentiate your needs and wants so that you will be able to single out how much you would need to cut out and put away into savings until you can afford to get that desired item. Now I am not saying that you should save up, that was just a small example, it's not exactly me predicting your fortune more like my cards are saying that you know if you sit back and plan out what you want, eventually you will get it. There’s something that you have been wanting, and you seem to have already thought and sat about what you would need to do in order to achieve that. My cards are telling me to tell you that if you haven’t already start making the moves to do what you need to do. Now it doesn’t have to be an item, it could be a union, partnership or a job opportunity. Don’t hold yourself back from the “What if’s” because you will miss all the shots you make in the dark by not shooting at all. You could get lucky. However, don’t be foolish and not plan and jump into whatever it is headfirst, be responsible with your future. Do everything to help you be successful, gather all the intel you need in order to proceed. Sit with yourself if you haven’t already and ask what do I need to do? What to do if this happens? Make sure you are ready. 

This is a cliche but understand that you are powerful and remember to believe in yourself for this go smoothly. 

song recommendations: Bazzi- Fantasy, Bo Burnham- All Eyes on Me, The Marias- All I really Want is You 

Pile 4 

Cards: Queen of Pentacles (r), Knight of Pentacles (r), 9oC(r), AoP (r), The Hanged Man (r), 5oC(r), 6oP(r), 9oP(r), Don’t believe every shitty thought you have, Have you eaten? B/c you’re acting like a baby, You think someone is lying, Good thing going on don’t ruin that shit, Believe what you see

(Aibo tarot, Rebel Deck) 

Hello Pile Four, First things first, everything came in reversed which tells me that there’s something that you are struggling with mentally speaking. However, given the positions where the cards have fallen into, the 9oC in the middle and the others being the knight and queen of pentacles on the side of it, I am being led to believe that you are stopping yourself in enjoying fruits of your labor for the long run. Yes, you are being fulfilled with very expensive items/activities recently but if you know you aren’t monitoring your spending, and budgeting within your sustainable budget, you are going to fuck yourself over. If you are too young to have to worry about focusing on spending habits for comfortable living, then the message you need to hear is to not bite from the hand that feeds you. You may or may not be aware that your entitled actions are going to get you cut off from whoever is helping you out financially. You can feel as though you deserve something but just because you feel that way doesn't mean that you are obligated to get whatever it is that you ask of others. Also playing devil's advocate for you, even if you are owed something from someone else, that doesn’t mean you should insult your way. And if you are being rude and disrespectful about whatever it is that you seek, hopefully you can understand how you were in the wrong and own up to it. Don’t do use any issues you struggle with to use as a scapegoat. Even if you are aware, you are mentally ill, that’s not a cute quirky reason to treat others like shit, get help.

 For those of you who are just struggling to budget and be responsible, your gonna have to just walk away from whatever it is that you truly don’t need. Anything that is considered a luxury item is not a need. Also try not to rely too heavily on the help of others just so you can maintain the life you currently have. And mind you, even if you aren’t buying designer clothes or buying from some expensive ass store like Sprouts. Something like having children or pets is also something that are luxurious and isn't commonly recognized as such. Not saying if you’re broke you can’t afford to have nice things but if you know you don't have enough to support yourself don’t bring another life into that poverty as well, obviously nuance is important so sometimes you gotta make the best out of the worst but if your actively seeking for something you can’t afford you're going to bite yourself in the ass or/and hurt others unintentionally. Motivate yourself by imagining your current stable life being ripped away from you. Use that as inspiration to get your shit together and build healthy spending habits. 

Song recommendations- Are we still friends by Tyler the creator, Bills, Bills, Bills by Destinys Child, Gold Digger by Kanye West 

Pile 5 

Cards: The fool, The World, Knight of Pentacles (r), the sustainer, the mentor, the unseen 

(Wise Dog Tarot, Wild Unknown Archetypes)

Hello pile five, the message will be quite short, but right off the bat there’s a hopeful and encouraging message centered around your career path that my cards want me to tell you. So, there’s something in your mind that you want to try out. Spirt is encouraging you make more with those ideas, whatever that means for you, you know better than me for what your own heart desires to be. If you’re a bit confused or unsure if you should try your goal/passion/dream into something outside of your mind or hobbies, single out what is the one thing that will sustain you. And I am not talking about money or food, obviously those things are required to be able to live but put that aside and focus on what you want to pursue. What’s something that will take you outside of your comfort zone? You don’t need to make big steps and sacrifices right off the bat; the important thing is that you eventually understand what you want outta your life in a career perspective. You definitely need a mentor to help you as there’s a lot that you are unable to see as you are shielded from what it takes to be into that specific field of work you aspire for. It's one thing to want something, but its a whole other thing to live and experience it. So yes, jump in, but understand beforehand what you will need to do, take baby steps to where you need to go. 

 Song recommendations: Hip-hop Phile by BTS, How Far You’ll Go by “Moana” (It's a Disney song, I dunno if i should credit Lin Manuel or Disney), Lose Yourself by Eminem 

Pile 7 

Pile 8 

 Pile 9 

[hauntedparadisebandana]

141 x drummer!femreader

Summary: fanboy soap drags the group to a downtown bar to see his favorite band member play live.

Pt 1/2

Warnings: swearing, implied scent kink??, Mentions of drinking, Y/H means your height

[The pov's switch in this story]

*7:00 pm, downtown bar*

The bell rings as the group enters, doors shutting behind them, they stand there, taking in their surroundings. The air is thick with cigarette smoke and cheap perfume, the lights above are dim, giving the atmosphere a chill vibe. The group takes a seat in a booth near the stage.

"Why are we here again?" Grumbles ghost, hands shoved in his hoodie pockets. He was forced to come on the groups adventure downtown.

"We're here to see the band play. They're one of my favorites." Explains soap, being the ring leader of the trip, excitement coursing through his viens.

"Couldn't you just listen to their music back at base?" "But it wouldn't be the same, plus now I get to see 'em live." Ghost huffs at his response, leaning back into the seat. He always ended up on soaps trips, whether he wanted to or not.

"What's the band called? I may have heard of them before." Says gaz leaning in.

"The Deck, a total of five people, each named after a card. They mostly play rock/metal, and a few of 'em can sing. My favorite member is the drummer."

"Hm, never took you for the metal head type, soap." Quips price, coming to set down their drinks, then popping a seat by gaz.

"Well, ye learn something new every day, gaz what time is it?" "It's 7:20, are they playing soon?" "Yep, they play at 7:30 once every week at different bars in town, at the end the drummer gives away her pair of drum sticks she used to play that night, if im lucky she'll give them to me."

This gets a reaction out of everyone, ghost chuckles lightly while price and gaz lets out hearty laughs. At this soap's face flushes red, getting embarrassed, "What's so funny?"

"So the drummers a girl huh, sounds like you're a bit of a fan boy." "Am not!" "Are too! You even know what time they play each week! And that the drummer gives away her sticks, whats next, their favorite colors, foods?"

Soaps flushes more, face red as a tomato as he leans back and turns away, "You know what, gaz, I officially hate you." "So you do know all that! Admit it, you are a fan boy!" "You are such a dick! I only know because they said it in an interview!"

Price laughs at soap and Gaz's bantering, getting a little chuckle out of ghost as well.

"Don't worry soap, it's cute how much of a fan boy you are for the drummer," gaz leans in and starts to pinch soap's cheeks, cooing and babying him; earning him a swift punch to the arm.

"That's enough out of you two, they're coming."

"What? No joke?!" Soap whips his head around to look at the stage. No one's on. When he turns around, gaz is laughing into his hand, and price hides his smirk in his glass of whiskey.

"Captain! I thought we were cool, now yer teasing me too?"

"Sorry soap, couldn't resist, but they're coming on for real this time" as he points to the stage the members bring out equipment, setting up quickly as possible, when they finish and take their places. The singer up front, the guitarist to the right, drummer on the far right. On the other side is the bass and second guitarist to the far left. The group could see the appeal, she was hard to miss.

"Soap, if you don't stop staring so hard, your eyes might fall out of your head." gaz laughs again, placing a hand on soaps shoulder.

"Just look at 'er tattoos! They're awesome. "

You could see ghost perk up at 'tattoos' she has officially piqued his interest, but he didn't want to show it, so he just stared at her intricate ink. Her most visible tattoos are on her arms, one arm is a full sleeve, the other arm has scattered tattoos. There is one peeking above her neck line of her shirt, it goes down between her breasts. Ghost nodded slowly, taking in her appearance. She was special, different, the whole band was, and the group liked that. Slightly extroverted, and bold, ready to fuck shit up.

"Aint she a sight for sore eyes" price mumbles, taking a longer sip, the thoughts coming faster than he can drink. "Ghost I can tell you're thinking, You looking at her too?" Says price quietly, taking another sip of whiskey, it turns out ghost can't hide his emotions from everyone,

"She's different..." "That she is," Price chuckles,

"I told you guys, she's cool,"

Suddenly the main lights turn off, and the stage lights come on, illuminating the band. after the singer gives introductions they begin to play. It seems as if the group controlled the bar entirely, the music was bassy, compelling, loud; and the people seemed to like it, as most sung along screaming. The drums and guitar had a solo part, and soap almost melted, gaz just laughed at him. Soon, the song was over, the last echo of sound was heard and the bar erupted into yells, claping and whistling.

By the end of the songs, the group was tipsy, with soap and gaz almost on the edge of being drunk. The group sits there in awe for a moment. The experience was new. "I'll say, that wasn't half bad, I like their style." Price crosses his arms.

"Yeah, you picked good soap," Ghost nods to soap. "I knew you would come around ghost! They're good, right? The way they play is amazing!" "Uh oh, he's fanboying again." "I'll kick your arse."

*y/n pov*

I wipe the sweat off my forehead, taking a swig of water. Me and my band mates smile and wave taking in the praise, the excitement. "Now it's time for the fun part, y/n, pick the lucky winner for tonight's sticks."

I smirk and quickly look around, I spot a booth close to the stage. A total of four men sat there, all looking at me. They're all cuties at that. The one sporting a mohawk had a twinkle in his eyes; a true metal lover at heart, I assume. I nod to the leader, hopping off the stage quickly making my way to the booth. The guards follow close behind, ensuring my safety. As I got closer, his eyes go wide. I take the guy with a Mohawk hands, giving him my drum sticks, my glossy lips form a grin as he stares at me, like a child meeting santa for the first time.

"You're tonight's lucky one." I smile at him sweetly, nodding to the rest of his table mates. Up close, everyone is rather handsome, their eyes drilling into my face, focus y/n. I make my way back to the stage, putting up my equipment, getting ready to leave.

*pov, 141*

Soap sits there, jaw slack and eyes wide. Gaz busts out laughing for the third time this night, and price smirks. "I-I got 'er sticks, I really got 'er sticks!" He exclaimed

"You sure did soap,"

"I don't know if anyone noticed, but damn she smells good," adds gaz. "Her smell is strong, sweet." "It's intoxicating." Ghost mumbles, rubbing his temple, the bourbon was finally getting to him. Her smell is like a sweet musk, hard to rub off, hard to get rid of. He remembers the way her bracelets and bangles jingled, sweet music to his ears. Fuck. He could feel something straining.

"'er voice is sweet too.... and her smile, shes really cool." "Oooook fanboy soap has gotten delirious." "Am not!" "Are too! Stop denying it!" "Whatever!" Their words slur a bit. Maybe they were a bit drunk after all.

Price sighs, rubbing his head at the twos antics. "I'm grabbing another drink, care to join?"

"Yeah, I'll go, but just to move around. I've been sitting so long it feels like my ass is glued to the seat." Gaz complains, holding his head in his hands.

"Let's go." The entire group gets up to get drinks, soap gasps as he spots y/n. She took her shirt of some time ago, now only in a sports bra, showing off her rad back tattoo. She stands with her hands in her pocket. The second guitarist is also standing, leaning against the booth talking to her, laughing.

"You should've seen the way he was looking at you! It was like looking at a kid seeing gifts under the tree."

"I seen his expression, I thought he was gonna get emotional and start crying right there as I gave him the sticks!"

the guitarist smirks glancing past y/n, "speak of the devil, it's the kid on Christmas and his group."

"Oh hush spade, leave the man alone."

We get closer to hear y/n hush the guitarist, we sit at the bar near where they stand, away from her and the guy, too drunk and weary to make decisions. Plus, the band's guards were close by, best not to piss them off. The guitarist continues to look over at us

"You know you guys can stand by us right, join us, we don't bite....well, I do but y/n doesn't." He pulls y/n in by the shoulder, to which she punches him.

"Don't listen to this jackass, come, it's safe to sit over here." She waves us over, inviting us to join her, those same bracelets and bracelets making the same sweet noise.

*y/n pov*

Theres a bit of an akward silence for a moment, I tap my hands on my thighs. Its then broken as the guy to my right speaks up, his voice rough and deep, smooth around the edges. It sends a shudder through my body, the smell of cigar smoke and cologne fills my senses.

"These are my men, ghost, gaz, and soap, I'm price." Each one nods and greets me as price says their name. Spade always being a dick has to speak up,

"So the kid on Christmas is soap, hm," he takes a sip of his drink, I pinch him after he says this.

"ignore him, so, what brings you guys downtown tonight..." I say, taking spades cup and taking a sip of whatever he's drinking.

"Well, our buddy soap here wanted to come see you guys live." Gaz grabs soap by the shoulders, shaking him.

"See us live hm? You a big fan?" I grin, looking soap right in his eyes, questioning him.

"Well-" "He's a huge fan, he knows the times you play, where you play, he even watches the group interview-" "Yes, I'm a fan," he says, cheeks red. Hand slapped over gazs mouth to hush him.

I put down my glass, "Oh, well we love very dedicated fans, don't we spade." "Mhm, love em'"

I lean back, looking at the two. The big one to my left, ghost, speaks up.

"Your tattoos..."

"Hm, what about them?" I look up at him, fuck he's tall, about 5 inches taller than me, as I'm Y/H. He looks about 5'10-6'2, well built, pure muscle, and oh that accent... he could easily crush me-

"Where do you get them done..." those eyes

"I do most myself, others I get a friend to do. I run a tattoo shop in my spare time."

"You have talent, y/n" price speaks up, smiling at me.

"Oh you flatter me," I joke, placing a hand on my chest. "No really, you play in a band, run a tattoo shop along with doing your own tattoos? That's pure talent that deserves recognition."

"Why thank you price," I laugh, running a hand through my hair, getting it out my face.

He nods down at me, I look at him. I see something shift in his expression, it was dark, hungry, I don't question it one bit; getting that all to familiar feeling in the bottom of my stomach. I squeeze my thighs. His eyes are a deep shade of blue, all of theirs are blue, except for gaz, his are a pretty shade of rich brown

"You smell really good..." gaz perks up,

"Ah, that's my perfume, strawberry poundcake, got it as a gift."

"..." Gaz soon has the same aura price had, hungry, wanting. I catch onto this quickly. Feeling my stomach jump I avert my eyes, looking for a distraction. Maybe he's just drunk...

"Hey y/n we need to head out, ace is tired of waiting and hes starting to bitch about it." Thank fucking god

"Ace is tired of everything" I sigh turning back to the group. "I gotta run boys, but me and the group will be down here tomorrow around 7:00 for an off day, if you wanna join."

"Sure lass, we'll join ya" soap nods eagerly, getting the others to agree even in their drunken states.

"Ok that's great! See you soon." I turn on my heels to run after spade who had started leaving without me. Face flushed and the feeling still in the pit of my stomach. Still feeling their eyes drilling into my back, I slide out the bar doors.

[geddy-leesbian]

a while back @highball66 made a post about Leon being a nerd that would probably play MTG, and apparently the concept got lodged in my brain so here's a drabble of Leon and Luis meeting at an MTG prerelease because those two are def nerds like that

I had their twink era RE2 era in mind when writing this, but not sure how much it actually matters

Leon had been apprehensive about coming here, expecting the crowd to be the stereotypical basement dwellers with noticeably bad hygiene. But he still came, because he's brand new to this city and didn't know anyone, or have any other ideas for how to meet people. Well, that's not entirely true. He knows some people, his coworkers. The problem is just that his naive belief that cops are morally upstanding folks that help people has been shattered beyond repair, and he has zero desire to spend any time with them outside of work. (He doesn't want to go to work with them either, but he has to, until he gets another job lined up.)

So it wasn't like Leon had anything to lose coming here, just a faint possibility to gain something.

There were a few of the basement dwellers Leon expected, but there was also something he absolutely did not expect: A very gorgeous man with tan skin, soft gray eyes, and a smile that's just about blinding. He's sitting across the room, and Leon keeps stealing glances at him. He’s clearly very experienced, with how fast he sorts his cards into his piles. Leon looks down at his own cards to sort and when he looks back up the man is already done with his own deck, counting to make sure he had the right amount, quickly sleeving it, and then scooping up the cards he wasn't playing to put them away.

He stands up and starts striding across the room, and Leon has to make a conscious effort to not stare and drool at the man. He's taller than Leon thought. He's got long, lean legs and the most perfect hips Leon has ever seen. And then somehow he's talking to Leon.

“Mind if I sit here?” He has an accent. It's hot. Leon had set his bag on the chair next to him, but moves it so the ridiculously hot stranger can take a seat. “This is your first time coming here? First time playing..?”

“Do I stick out that bad?”

“Not really. It's just that I know I would have recognized you if you'd been here before. I could never forget such a pretty face,” Did this guy seriously just call Leon pretty? In a warm, genuine tone, like it's actually a compliment? Leon is quite used to comments like that, but in a derogatory manner. "Compliments" hurled at him in mocking tones. “But I will admit, you do look a little lost. Do you want help building your deck?”

“Yeah, sure. I've played before, back in high school, but never made any decks. Just played with decks my friends would let me borrow. I wanted to have my own, but my foster parents thought the game was basically devil worship and would've been dragging my ass to the pastor if they ever found cards under their roof.”

Leon worries that might have been a little too personal too fast, but he's not sure Tall Hot Guy was even listening. He doesn't say anything, and seems laser focused on Leon's cards.

“Off to a good start, with your sorting,” In the time Tall Hot Guy made a deck, all Leon managed to do was open all his packs and sort them by color. Tall Hot Guy starts going through the piles, picking out some cards to set aside. “Prereleases are good for beginners. New cards, new mechanics, so even people with experience won't know everything. Besides, you're not even the only new player here. Now, I think you have enough for mono red, so we keep it simple and do that, if there isn't anything else you'd rather do?”

“That's fine, whatever you think is good. You're the expert.”

The “help” is less help and more just him doing everything. But he does talk as he goes through cards and starts laying them out. Leon is fine with the situation.

“Mana curve, it's important. This is your deck laid out from lowest to highest mana cost,” So there is a method to the madness. He figured there was a reason they were laid out the way they were, but hadn't figured it out. “You want variety, because you want to be doing things every turn. You need big win condition cards, but you don't want to just be sitting by idly waiting several turns to get enough mana for them, you need small things too. Of course you can get unlucky enough to not draw your lower cards early, but at least the odds are better if you have a good mix of low and high cards.”

Tall Hot Guy finishes the spells in Leon's deck and gets up to fetch the basic lands it will need from the shop's communal land station, and grabs something out of his bag too. He needs to stop standing up, because every time Leon really struggles to not ogle him. Curse those stupid skintight jeans.

Leon puts away the unused cards, except for one stack Tall Hot Guy made for reasons Leon really can't figure out. It seems so random, cards from every color.

“Hey, what's this stack of cards next to the deck?”

“Oh, those are just cards that I think will maybe be worth something,” After putting the lands on top of Leon’s deck, Tall Hot Guy starts putting the other stack in card sleeves. “These are extra sleeves you can have, to keep these in good shape in case you do want to sell them at some point.”

“Why are you being so nice to me?”

“I've already told you that you have a pretty face, right? I'm a sucker for a pretty face. I want you to have fun playing here, so you come back. Now, let me give you some pointers on what your deck wants to do!”

Leon hadn't expected this guy to actually stay and keep talking. He said Leon wasn't the only new player, so he figured once he got Leon's deck together he'd go over and help out the other newbies. But no. The only thing that Tall Hot Guy seems interested in is just talking Leon's ear off. This isn't a general newbie thing, there's something about Leon specifically. He barely absorbs a word he's saying, he's too busy staring at his stupid perfect face and messy curly hair he wants to touch.

Leon jumps up the second a game store employee calls out that deck building time is up and pairings are ready, because he really needs to get the hell away from this guy that's making him feel things his recent ex-girlfriend never could. He gets a slip of paper with his name and the name of his opponent: Dr. Lewis Serra. He looks around, totally lost, because he doesn't know anyone. Of course, Tall Hot Guy approaches him again.

“Do you need help finding your opponent?”

“First my deck, now helping me find someone, you're a real knight in shining armor, aren't you?” Was that flirty? Doesn't knight in shining armor usually have some romantic connotations? Did Leon actually just flirt with this guy? He's pretty sure he did. Christ. “You know who, uh, Dr. Lewis Serra is?”

“You're looking at him. Your knight just so happens to be your first opponent too. Guess it's just you and me, pretty boy,” The words make Leon's face heat up, but thankfully Lewis turns his back to Leon quickly, to lead him to a table. He just hopes and prays the blushing will have subsided before he sits down and faces Lewis. “By the way, the name is actually Luis Serra. The name on the slip is a stupid nickname that just won't die.”

“There a story behind it?”

“I suppose, depending on how you want to define story. Some idiot I played once thought that my name was pronounced like Lewis, and everyone else thought it was really funny. That's it. Like I said, stupid.”

“What about the Dr. part?”

“Oh, that, ah, that actually isn't a nickname. To toot my own horn, I was a real child prodigy. I got my PhD in biology when I was 16,” Oh great. This guy is tall, hot, and insanely smart. Be still Leon's beating heart. “Normally I'm humble and never introduce myself with the title, I don't want to seem pretentious. And I like to keep my work and personal life separate. It being on the slip is not my choice. I've asked them to stop putting it here, but of course they just think it's funny that it annoys me!”

“Well, there are worse nicknames. My coworkers call me Leon Stupid Kennedy.”

“Wow. Okay. You win, yanqui, I have no right to complain about being Dr. Lewis,” Luis lifts his life die up. “High roll? Or I can just let you go first, since you're a beginner?”

“Such a gentleman, guess I'll just go first.”

Leon's deck is as straightforward as Luis promised. He plays mountains. He taps mountains and casts creature spells that he attacks with. There are some instant and sorcery spells in there too, but not a lot and they're pretty simple, mostly just kill spells.

Luis's deck is complicated, which is no surprise. Just about every single card he plays triggers some combo on cards he already has out, and he's constantly drawing cards, scrying, tapping and untapping things, putting counters on shit… It's impossible for Leon to keep up with. But he doesn't really need to. It doesn't matter what Luis is up to, his deck is meant to just keep attacking regardless of what his opponent is doing. And it… Actually works? He thought he was going to get his ass handed to him, but then he gets Luis down to 5 life…

“You got me. There's no way I can win now,” Luis says, scooping his board up and starting to shuffle his deck. “Game two!”

-

“Oye, earth to Leon, you in there?” Jesus Christ. Luis played a card that required him to shuffle his library and Leon completely zoned out staring at Luis's hands. At first he was just looking at his rings, but then he was just watching his hands shuffling his deck, thinking about what else those fingers could do… What the hell is wrong with Leon? “It's your turn!”

“Right. Sorry. Just zoned out.”

Game two does go to Luis. Quite possibly because Leon kept swooning over him and getting distracted.

But somehow Leon gets his shit together enough to win game three. Luis goes up to report the result of their match, and then the other players that are done gather around and give Luis some shit for losing to a beginner. Leon's anxiety suddenly kicks into overdrive and he gets hit with a vision of Luis throwing him under the bus to protect his own reputation, saying something about how Leon sucks and Luis could have crushed him if he tried, but he went easy on him, and Leon would spend the rest of the night questioning if he actually knows how to play. Being an outcast among other outcasts would be a new low for him.

It doesn't happen. Luis doesn't even dignify the comments with a response, just wanders away from them to glance at the ongoing matches. Leon is both relieved and disappointed that Luis doesn't try to talk to him again. Not until the end of the night, after prize packs are being handed out.

“So… Will I be seeing your pretty face around here again? You won three packs, you could save them for a Friday Night Magic draft for free?”

“Yeah. Think I will.”

Leon isn't sure what exactly a Friday Night Magic draft is, but he'll figure it out.

[avatarmerida]

Alliance

A short thing I found in my drafts that I forget about. I wrote it when I was overthinking the huntlow pinkie hold. It consumes me to this day. 💚💛

—-

When the scouts ran drills, none of them ever wanted to team up with Hunter. It was quite the opposite, in fact. You’d think that they’d be fighting over the honor of having the head of the coven and the Emperor’s nephew on their team, but no. Rather, they’d jump at the chance to gang up on him and Hunter couldn’t help but feel like they enjoyed getting to exclude him.

But he worked better alone, anyway. It made him work harder.

“All right team, line up!” announced Willow. “Gus is gonna rig up some illusions to test our reflexes! Let’s see if we can sniff out the real Gus and snatch some flags!”

The Entrails cheered in agreement as they ran to take their places on the field. Willow smiled at their excitement and followed suit, setting up beside Hunter who had managed to sneak away for a few hours to help run drills.

“Hey Hunter! Wanna be my partner?”

“Y-your partner?” he repeated, confused.

“Yeah!” she said with a mischievous smile. “You take the left, I take the right. If we work together, I bet we can do it in record time.”

“But we don’t... have to work together,” he said, in case she had forgotten her own instructions. “You don’t have to work with me.”

“I know I don’t have to,” she chuckled. “I want to, if you want to. You’re good at strategy; it’ll be fun.”

“Oh, yeah sure.” He said, warming up to the fact that she was serious. “I’d... like that.”

“Awesome!” Willow said with a bright smile, extending her pinky out to him. “Alliance?”

He looked at her gesture with confusion and the raised his hand to mirror hers and touched his pinky to hers. “Alliance.” He confirmed. Willow tugged his pinky, completing the promise as Gus and his illusions took to the skies and beckoned the team to come after him.

He was new, that’s why she picked him.

——

Amity took game night very seriously. The only person who took it more seriously was Hunter. Before they could begin any game, they each had to have the instructions memorized. Every dice roll, every moment, every turn has to be by the book. They prided themselves in knowing every technicality which only fueled their competitive nature even more.

“Go back four spaces and take three additional cards, Hunter!” Amity ordered, taking far too much delight in delivering the blow.

“No! I was so close to the jackpot space!” Hunter exclaimed in utter dismay as he took his punishment cards from the deck on the table.

“Amity please!” Gus groaned in desperation. “We were so close to being done! Why??”

“Because if anyone’s gonna be the champ it’s gonna be me!” She declared, furiously shaking the dice to power up her revenge roll.

“What’s up Gus? I thought you liked silly human board games.” Lus said.

“I do! But these two and their love of rules make it so hard to cheat!” Gus sighed. “Deception is half the fun.”

“Don’t worry Gus, Hunter is still the closest the victory circle,” assured Willow. “When we’re done we can go watch the clothes spin around in the dryer, that usually makes you feel better.”

“But I don’t have enough tokens to make it past the trick space!” Hunter said in a panic.

“Where did you guys even find this game?” Luz said under her breath, looking at the box.

“Hey, I’ve got plenty,” said Willow, putting the plastic coins in a pile. “You can use some of mine!”

“Oh no Willow, I couldn’t,” Hunter insisted, knowing she had worked hard for her collection. “You earned those.”

“We can share them,” she said with a shrug, having worked hard to earn them mostly to aggravate Amity. “We can work together.”

“Really? Uh, hold on lemme check the rule book I know know if it says that’s allowed...”

“Well, it doesn’t say it’s noooot,” she pointed out playfully, gathering her pieces and scooting closer to him to combine their loot. “Alliance?” She asked, sticking out her pinky. Her face donned a devious smile as Amity waited in suspense for Hunter to confirm or deny, certain their team up would dismantle everything she worked for.

“Alliance.” Hunter confirmed, grabbing her pinky with his own and furrowing his brow in determination, ready to make Amity pay for playing as the piece he wanted to play as.

She wanted to end the game, that’s why she picked him.

—-

“… and then there’s supposed to be punch there too! It’s like all the flavors mixed together, so it’s looks kinda gross but trust me it’s actually really good!” Vee continued to happily explain as the group walked down the sidewalk to her friend’s house. They had all been invited to a party and Vee and Luz were trying to cram as much information about human realm parties to their friends as possible before they arrived. For the most part, they were all excited. They had been working hard and could use a break, and of course Gus had brought his notebook to take down as much as he could. But Willow couldn’t help but notice how quiet Hunter was as he dragged his feet beside her.

“You okay, Hunter?” Willow whispered and he flinched, as though he had been so zoned out he forget where he was. “You look… sick?”

“Sick?”

“I mean, you still look really nice,” she said quickly, knowing how much time he had spent making the jean jacket he was wearing. He looked more than just nice, if she was being honest, but she had a feeling that wasn’t what was plaguing his mind. “But you look nervous.”

“I mean… maybe I am, a little,” he admitted, hoping the others couldn’t hear. “I’ve just… never been to a party before, let alone a human one. I-I don’t know what I’m supposed to say or when I’m supposed to say something or if there’s a certain place I’m supposed to sit or-.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” she assured him with a gentle giggle. “I’ve never really been to a party before either.”

“You? Really?” He practically gasped. “But you’d be so fun at parties!”

“Aw, thanks,” she blushed, subconsciously adjusting her hair clip. “But yeah, I’ve never been to a party that wasn’t a birthday party, and even then it was only me and Gus. But this sounds like it’ll be fun.”

“Really? It sounds terrifying to me,” Hunter gulped, feeling like her was turning paler.

“Well, I’m really glad you’re going,” she said sweetly, knowing he hardly had a choice in the matter. He had just gotten on better terms with Vee and turning down an invitation didn’t seem like a good way to keep that positive momentum going. His heart leapt at Willow’s words, though he was sure it was just her being nice. He hardly expected to see much of her after they arrived.

He was sure the moment they walked in, everyone would be drawn to Willow. How could they not be? She was kind, funny, charismatic and not that he noticed but she looked absolutely stunning in the green sweater she had just bought, the way it made her eyes pop even in the dim moonlight. She was interesting and fun, they’d probably form a line for the chance to talk to her. He assumed he would gravitate to a spot in the shadows, maybe see if there were any books to read. Luz had mentioned that parties where the perfect time to impress someone and while Hunter pretended not to know what she was implying, he couldn’t imagine him being impressive in this type of social setting.

“I’m actually a little nervous too,” Willow said softly and Hunter looked at her in surprise once again. “I mean, I don’t know anyone there.”

“Well, you know me,” he said simply.

“That’s true,” she smiled, glancing up at him illuminated by the streetlights. “Um, would you wanna… hang out at the party?”

“Me? A-are you sure?” Hunter said, clearing his throat. She had plenty of other options.

“Yeah,” she said. “If it’s boring or awkward we can at least talk to each other. I like talking to you.”

“Oh… I like talking to you too,” he said, stopping at the edge of the driveway as the others walked in the front door. Vee greeted her friends with open arms and proceed to introduce Luz, diving into their story about being distant cousins or something. He sighed, his chest felt tight all of a sudden imaging all the people in the house. “I just…”

Willow sensed his discomfort.

“Hey, no worries,” she said. “How about if one us wants to leave early, we walk home together?”

“Really? You wouldn’t mind?”

“Of course not,” she said. “We can always think of an excuse to leave. I’d rather be walking with you than at a party without you.”

“Oh.”

“And Luz mentioned there might be games and we’ve always been a great team at games,” she smiled. She did not bring up one game Luz had mentioned in particular, mostly as a joke, where two people spend seven minutes together. She didn’t necessary plan on participating, but if she did she’d want Hunter as her partner. “Or if someone talks to one of us and we don’t know what to say we can help each other out.”

“I’d really like that,” Hunter said with a sigh of relief, his hands fidgeting at his sides. Willow smiled, happy to see he was okay with her idea. She brought up her pinkie and offered it to him with a bright smile.

“Alliance?”

He looked at her, still confused as to how she was so content to spend the whole night with him. But he couldn’t say it wasn’t an ideal situation for him.

“Alliance.” He said, linking his pinkie to hers. But this time instead of releasing it after they sealed the promise, she brought their hands down to their sides and used it to lead him inside. He knew everyone who saw them would assume they were together but he did not remove himself from her grasp.

She didn’t want to talk to strangers, that’s what she did it.

She didn’t want to get lost, that’s what she did it.

She knew he would hide in a dark corner without her, that’s why she did it.

She was was worried he’d say something dumb and blow their cover, that’s why she did it.

Hunter’s mind flooded with excuses for why she did not drop his hand and stood so close to him without hesitation. Because he couldn’t fathom the reason for their alliance was because she wanted him on her side because she just wanted to be with him. She could pick anyone, but she kept picking him.

[the-kr8tor]

YESS I LOVED IT TIANA'S MY FAVOURITE DISNEY PRINCESS. Daily Hobie HC! HEAVILY inspired by the female vocals of the song 'Friends on the other side'. Hobie knew he wasn't the only 'Shadow Man'/talker ever since he heard your name fall from someone's lips on the streets. You hadn't heard of him, but he's definitely heard of you more than he's intended to, and Hobie's interest is peaked. He wonders if he could possibly strike up a deal with you, not sure what to entirely expect as he stepped into your shop, admiring the hazy green and purple glow. And there you were, in all your glory, your gaze following a newcomer's body as he stepped through the haze, your dominant hand shuffling cards almost expectantly. Hobie couldn't help but put on a charming smile for you, his lanky fingers tapping against his cane as he addresses you smoothly by name. He felt as if it was a small win as he watched your eyebrow raise, followed by a smirk. Hobie sat himself in the seat across from yours, a clothed table in between the two of you as he introduced himself as the Shadow Man. As he started to slow-talk you, he found his smirk widening as you smoothly cut him off, your velvety voice pointing out how he clearly wasn't here for simple small talk. His eyes glittered in the haze of light, watching your every move like you were watching his. The entire time, you had been absent-mindedly shuffling the cards, which seemed to slow as he proposed a deal between the two of you. You slowly spread out the cards, before scooping them all into a deck situated in the middle of the table. Prompting him to go on, Hobie suggested that you two unite in business to have the most power. Hobie could sense you were interested, but clearly you were smarter than he had initially thought, seeming to be on his level of customer-charm. (The entire conversation went like 'The Other Side' from The Greatest Showman) Eventually, you two settled on an agreement of equal share. For once, this handshake had nothing tied to it. No restricting fumes, no voodoo witchcraft, nothing. Or else the entire store might've erupted in flames due to battling for control over the deal. However, there was one thing that Hobie wanted. Your heart. Whenever the two of you met, which was more often than you both realize, Hobie always made a good impression of himself with a kiss to the back of your hand. He also always left untainted flowers for you, smirking internally when he notices them in a vase settled on a shelf off to the side, seeing how the flowers he gives you still thrive in your touch. One time, while both you and Hobie were enjoying some casual banter with each other, with Hobie managing to nick some beignets for the two of you. Taking a bite, with the powdered sugar sticking to your top lip, Hobie saw his as a perfect opportunity to pounce. He leant over slightly, pecking the powdered sugar off your lips, almost chuckling as he observed you being caught off-guard. Taking another bite of the sweet treat, quickly licking over your lips and trying not to focus on the fact you could faintly taste him on your lips, you joke about the original deal you both made, trying to keep the surprise and small flustered-ness out of your voice. Although you both haven't explicitly stated anything of that sort, it has become obvious that Hobie had managed to make you his, and he, yours. -🐦‍⬛

YAYY!!

Daily Hobie HC!!

Yeesss more dr. Facilier au!!!

Hobie strolling over to R's shop thinking that he can out charm them like the rest and then leaving with the biggest grin possible absolutely smitten beyond repair 🥰

Damnnn R is such a badass!! Didn't even fluster whenever Hobie would flirt back with a bunch of beautiful bouquets (not me tho I'll melt right there and then)

You had me at beignets now i can't stop thinking abt it even though i haven't tried it. Yet!

Using your finger to wipe the powdered sugar? NOPE! A kiss will do!!!! R is so much tougher than I am lmaooo I feel like my heart would stop after that 😂

[layce2015]

Supernatural (Dean Winchester x Female!Reader)

Criss Angel Is A Douchebag

Masterlist

"This, this isn't a trick, okay? I, I, I don't do tricks. This is a demonstration about demons and angels, love and lust..." a guy with short dark hair and dressed in all black and wearing eyeliner rambled on as he does some sort've card trick for an audience.

"What a douchebag." Dean grumbles. "Agreed." I said as I noticed a camera man and a person holding a microphone nearby. "—all that stuff mixed up in my head." the guy said as Sam leans towards us.

"That's Jeb Dexter." he said. "Who?" I asked. "I don't even want to know how you know that." Dean said to Sam. "He's famous, kind of." Sam said. "For what? Douchebaggery?" Dean asked and I snort at this as Jeb continues on with his ramble or demonstration that he was doing.

"—but whatever happens, no matter how messed up it gets, don't touch me, okay? For your own safety." he said and he inhales then he exhales, shaking his head, then imitates something like a seizure. With one hand he grabs for the cards in his other hand and scatters them, flinging them in the direction of the window behind him.

"Go back to hell, demon!" He shouts and the card that sticks to the window is the ace of diamonds. Jeb drags his hand over the card to show that it's on the far side of the glass. "Is this your card?" he asked and the audience began to applaud.

"You've got to be kidding me. A fake demon possession?" Dean said, disgusted, and he walks away, Sam and I follow him. "I can't believe people actually fall for that crap." Dean grumbles. "It's not all crap." Sam defended. "What part of that was not a steaming pile of BS?" I asked Sam. "Okay, that was crap, but that's not all magicians. It takes skill." Sam said.

"Oh, right, right, I forgot. You were actually into this stuff, weren't you?" Dean asked him and I turn to Sam. "Were you really?" I asked Sam, who stays silent. "Did you have like a deck of cards and a wand?" I asked, teasingly, and Sam rolls his eyes. "I was thirteen. It was a phase." Sam said and I chuckle. "That's adorable, Sam." I said.

"Just—it bugs me. You know, playing at demons and, and magic, when the real thing will kill you bloody." Dean said. "Like a guy who drops dead of ten stab wounds without a single tear in his shirt?" Sam asked and Dean smiles. "That's what I'm talking about." he said and we head off.

The lady that was Vance's assistant was tossing a bunch of metal rings into a mostly-packed trunk. Vance was the man Sam told is that died with ten stab wounds. She turns to face us as Dean asked. "So did your boss have any enemies that you know of?"

"Vance had plenty of enemies." She replied as she leans down and grabs the end of a series of tied-together handkerchiefs. "How so?" Sam asked her. "He would steal from other magicians. All the time." the assistant said.

"What would he steal?" I asked, curiously. "Stage effects, closeup techniques, anything he could get his hands on." she replied. "Is that enough to get him killed?" Dean asked her. "These guys take this stuff pretty seriously." she said and she moves a cloth off a white rabbit. "There you are." she said as she bends down to pick up and pet the rabbit.

"Did you find anything weird in Vance's stuff? Well, weirder?" Dean asked the assistant. "Matter of fact, I did." she said and she puts the bunny in a bag then pulls out a Rider-Waite tarot card: the Ten of Swords. The image on the card is of ten swords sticking out of a man's back.

"I'm guessing this didn't belong to Vance." Sam said. "He hated card tricks. Never wanted them around. Let alone in his precious cape." she said and she hands over the card. Sam looks at both sides of it and I come up to his side. It looked like a perfectly ordinary tarot card.

"It's a lame gig. I'm in a fleabag hotel doing this man-of-the-people crap, and freaking Angel's in Vegas doing Cirque du Soleil! That should have been mine." Dean and I hear Jeb shout into his phone while we approach at an adjacent table with two older men sitting in.

"All right, boys, get it in gear, I don't got all day." Jeb shouts to his crew and they start moving while Dean and I come upon the old men, Vernon and Charlie. "You Vernon Haskell?" Dean asked and the two me turn to us.

"Who's asking?" One of the men asked us, who I suspected was Vernon. "Federal agents Ulrich and Hetfield." Dean said as he and I show Vernon and Charlie, out FBI ID's. "Looking into the death of Patrick Vance." I added while Jeb talks into the camera then turns to the old man standing next to hi..

"I'm Jeb Dexter. This is Devil Twist. We're chilling at the International Magicians' Convention, which is a dope chance to tip my hat to the wicked cats who came before me. Smoking hot effect last night, Jim." He said. "Jay." the old man said. "Huh?" Jeb said, confused. "My name is Jay." Jay said and Jeb waves his hand. "Yeah, whatever. We can loop it later." Jeb said, dismissively. 

"What a douchebag." Vernon mutters. "Couldn't agree more." Dean said while I pull out out the Ten of Swords card out of my jacket pocket. "This familiar to you?" I asked him. "Should it be?" Vernon asked me and I wasn't really liking the way he was talking to us, like we were keeping him from something important.

"Well, we heard that you used tarot cards in your act." Dean said. "My act?" Vernon said then he laughs. "That was a long time ago. I haven't touched a deck in years, you know..." he then holds up his shaking hand.

"Do you know someone that might use them now?" I asked him and Vernon thinks for a moment. "Well, there was a guy down on Bleeker Street." he said. "Oh, yeah. He, he peddles that kind of specialty stuff." Charlie pipes up.

"Did he have a problem with Vance?" Dean asked. "Matter of fact, Vance crossed him about a year ago. Probably cost him fifty grand in royalties." Vernon said as Charlie nods.

"You know the exact address?" I asked them. "Four twenty-six Bleeker." Vernon replied. "Ask for Chief." Charlie adds. "Chief." Dean repeated and I nod to the men. "Thank you." I said and we walk out of the building.

That night, we walk along the street till we come to a neon sign saying 426 and I stop. "Dean, I don't know about this..." I said as I nod towards the bars on the door. "This seems excessive for a magician." I said. "He could be paranoid." Dean suggests and he knocks on the bars on the door. The chain-link door swings open, revealing a young man who eyes us.

"We're, uh, here to see Chief." Dean said. The man raises his eyebrows and opens the barred door. We walk inside and the man leads us downstairs. "Stay here. Don't touch anything." The young man tells us then he leaves.

"Um...this doesn't seem like a place for a magician." I said as we look around and see graffiti on the walls and the bass line of music is audible. A door opens and we turns to face it only to see a large man climb the stairs, backlit, and the music is more clearly heard.

The man, Chief I presume, is wearing all leather and carrying a flogger, which he slaps into his other hand a couple times. "Two in one night? Oh, ain't I lucky? You two are really gonna get it tonight." He said and I was lost for words at this while Dean says. "There's been a misunderstanding. I, uh, think we've been had." 

"Oh, you ain't been had till you been had by the Chief." Chief said and Dean frowns. "Oh, and before we get started, what's your safeword?" Chief asked us and I roll my eyes while Dean swallows. "Look, Chief, my partner and I are doing an investigation and we were mislead by a couple of guys who obviously thought it would be funny. So..." I said and I open my jacket, revealing my holstered gun. "If you want to keep doing this lifestyle, I'd suggest you let us go...please." I said and Chief looks between us.

Later, we walked out on the street and the door slams shut behind us and Dean let's out a exasperated sigh, places his hands on his knees and leans forward while I had my hands on my hips. "God, that was awkward." He said and I nod. "Yeah...I mean, right off the bat, a flogger? Kinda going in strong there." I remarked and Dean turns to me. "Personally, I'm more of a tie me to the bed type of person..." I said and Dean looks at me, bewildered.

"Come again?" He asked. "Although, I think silk is a better option to use in bed.” I remarked then he grabs my arm. "Wait a minute." Dean said and I turn to him, seeing the look of shock and confusion on his face. "What? Didn't I tell you I dabbled into that lifestyle at one point?" I said. "No. You never mentioned it. In fact, I remember you and me being handcuffed at one point and you mentioned this wasn't your first time in handcuffs but you said it wasn't like that." Dean said, in a accusatory tone, and I chuckle.

"Yeah, I haven't been handcuffed in that way before, it was with either a rope or a tie." I said. "And why am I just finding this out? I mean, when did that happen?" Dean asked and I smile then walk up closer to him. "Wouldn't you like to know, big boy." I said with a cheeky grin then I winked and walked towards the Impala.

*3rd Person POV*

"Wouldn't you like to know, big boy." (Y/n) said as she got up close to Dean. He felt a rush of excitement at her words and when she winked at him, it made his heart thump harder in his chest and his legs started to shake.

Can she be anymore perfect? he asked himself as she starts to walk away, her hips swaying from side to side. He had this urge to just pick her up and carry her off somewhere, like some caveman, and maybe try out the whole tying her up to the bed routine with her.

Unfortunately, they had a job to do and he clears his throat, shakes his head and follows after her to the Impala. But he made a mental note to himself that he has to remember to grab a tie the next time he and (y/n) got a room to themselves.

*(y/n)'s POV *

Later, Dean and I meet up with Sam at the entrance of the theater, where a magic show was about to start. "Find anything interesting?" Dean asked him. "What? Uh, no. You guys?" Sam asked. "Nothing we want to talk about, or think about, ever again." I said and I turn my head to Dean and gave him a quick wink. He bites his lips and I smirk before we head inside and see Vernon and Charlie standing together, talking amongst each other.

"The Chief, huh?" I said to them as I stomp towards them, angrily. "What's the matter? Chief not yours or your boyfriend's type?" Charlie asked, mockingly, and he smirks. I smirk back.

"You know, I could have you both arrested for obstruction of justice." I threatened. "How? You're no Fed." Vernon said. "We con people for a living, girlie. Takes more than a fake badge to get past us." Charlie said and I clench my fist and was about to raise it but Dean grabs my hand and he and Sam start to laugh.

"You got us. Yeah, we—we are actually—aspiring magicians." he said and I furrow my brow at him. "Yeah, we -- We came to the convention 'cause we thought we could learn something." Sam said. "Yeah, get some ideas for our new show." said Dean.

"Ooh, what kind of show?" Vernon asked us. "Well, it's-- It's a --" Dean said, thinking, then I speak up. "It's a brother act." I said. "Yeah. Yeah, you know, with the rings and doves and...rings. And she's our lovely assistant." Dean said as he puts his left arm around me and I nod with a fake smile on my face but I really wanted to deck these old farts in the face.

"You want to learn something? Stick around." Charlie tells us and he directs us to watch the stage to see another older man appear on stage. I recognize this man as he was the one talking to Jeb earlier today about the show, I believe he said his name was Jay.

"Ladies and gentlemen, what you're about to witness is a feat so daring, So dangerous, even the great Houdini dared not attempt it. I give to you...The executioner!" Jay said as he presents a stand with a noose above it. "Now, sir, as you can see, this jacket is the real article." Jay said to the young assistant, who shows off the jacket. Then he puts the jacket on Jay and made sure it was on tight then he placed the noose around Jay's neck.

"Thank you, sir. You may take your seat." Jay said and the man goes to his seat. "Now, I will have one minute -- 60 seconds --To escape certain death. Let's see if I can do it." Jay said and the curtain falls and Jay's silhouette is seen struggling to get out of the straightjacket.

"I don't think he's gonna make it." Dean said as we watch the silhouette struggle. Then the light behind Jay goes dark and a second later he pushes aside the curtain, unharmed and free. "Oh! That was amazing! That was freakin' amazing!" Dean said, excitedly, as he and the audience applaud. "That was...not humanly possible." Sam said. "Even by magician standards?" I asked him and he nods at me.

"Looks like this guy Jay was a pretty big deal in the '70s." I tell the boys as we sit at the motel and I look through my laptop. "Which in magician land means what, exactly?" Dean asked. "Big enough to play radio city music hall." I added.

"What got him stuck in their where are they now? File?" Dean asked. "He got old." I said. "Okay, so maybe incredible Jay is using real magic to stage a comeback." said Dean. "It's possible. Some kind of spell that works a death transference." Sam said.

"How does the tarot card mix into it?" I asked Sam. "I don't know." He replied. "Man...hope I die before I get old. Whole thing seems brutal, don't it?" Dean said. "You think we will?" Sam asked.

"What?" Dean asked. "Die before we get old." Sam said. "(Y/n) and I both have already." Dean said and Sam scoffs. "You know what I mean, Dean. I mean, do you think we'll still be chasing demons when we're 60?" he asked. "No, I think we'll be dead...for good." Dean said and I noticed Sam looked perturbed.

"What? You want to end up like -- Like Travis? Huh? Or Gordon, maybe?" Dean asked. "There's Bobby." Sam points out and I snort. "Oh, yeah, there's a poster child for growing old gracefully." I chuckle. "Maybe we'll be different guys." Sam said and Dean begins to eye Sam.

"What kind of Kool-Aid you drinking, man? Sammy, it ends bloody or sad. That's just the life." he said. "What if we could win?" Sam asked. "Win?" Dean and I asked him. "If there was a way we could just...put an end to all of it." Sam said and I look Sam over.

"Sam, is there something going on you're not telling us?" I asked, worried. "No." Sam said, quickly. "Sammy." Dean said, warningly. "No. Look, I'm just saying...I just wish there was a way we could...go after the source. That's all. Cut the head off the snake." Sam explained. 

"Well, the problem with the snake is that it has a thousand heads. Evil bitches just keep piling out of the Volkswagen." Dean said and Sam sighs, sadly. "Yeah. Guess you're right." he said, downtrodden, and Dean gives a slight sympathetic look to him.

"Why don't you go see if you can track down Jay? (Y/n) and I'll see what we can dig up on this tarot card." Dean said and Sam nods then leaves.

"You're being quiet." Dean said as I continue to help him research on the tarot card, sometime after Sam left. Well, I was supposed to research but I know I've read the first couple of sentences way too many times as I start to get lost in thought.

"I just...guess, I was just thinking about what Sam said." I said. "Oh God, not you too." Dean groans. "I just don't know if I wanna die young, that's all, Dean." I said, annoyed. "You have already." Dean remarks. "Yeah, and thanks to you, I got a second chance." I said.

"You really want to keep doing this until you're really old?" Dean asked and I shake my head. "No, I'm saying more to the fact that...maybe one day, to retire and try to have a normal life." I said and Dean sighs and shakes my head. "It's just a nice dream, is all." I said, shrugging. "I mean, you must have thought about it at least once."

Dean sits there, stay silent, as he looks down and I scoff and try to concentrate on the research. "You remember, a few years back, when the Djinn captured me?" He asked and I turn to him. "Yeah...you said that it was your wish to have your mom live. And you had a perfect life, besides the fallen out you had with Sam." I said.

"Well, there was one thing I uh...kinda kept from you." He said and I look over at him, curiously. "In that dream, you and me had a life together. We had a house, you were a nurse and it was just this little perfect life we had together." He explained and watch him as I listened to him.

"And when we actually got together, that dream has come up in my mind every now and then. And...I'm not gonna lie, I kinda do want that life with you, (y/n), more than anything. But...I just know that with the life we lead, it's probably not gonna happen." He said and I frown and look down.

There was a long silence between us and I hear him flipping through a book before I let out a sigh. "If we did live that life..." I said and he let's out a heavy sigh. "(Y/n)..." he said, exasperated, and I turn to face him. "Just...indulge me for a bit, please." I said and he closes his mouth. "What would our apple pie life look like?" 

He thinks for a few moments then said. "We'd have a house, for starters." And I chuckle. "Well, I sincerely hope so." I chuckled, snarkily, and he narrows his eyes at me. "Please, continue." I said then his eyes move off to the side as he thinks.

"We would have at least three or four bedrooms." He said. "Three or four bedrooms?" I said, questioning. "Yeah. One for you and me, one for Sammy and the other two...maybe for the kids." Dean said, shrugging, and my heart stopped at this.

"Kids?" I asked, shocked. "Yeah, why not? Unless you don't..." Dean said and I shake my head. "No, no, I do want kids one day, I just didn't know if you wanted them." I said. "Of course I do. Especially you being the mother...you'd make a great mom." He said and I felt my cheeks heat up at this and I give a small smile.

"Yeah, and you'd be an okay father." I teased and he gives a fake offended look. "What do you mean an okay father? I'd be a great Dad!" He said and I laugh. "Oh yeah, I can see it now. You making our child listen to Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd..." I listed off. "Those are great bands." He said and I laugh. "I could see you showing off how to fix the car and, if we had a boy, I could see you teach him how to pick up chicks." I said. "He'd be learning from the best." Dean said and I laugh while he smiled.

"And if we had a girl, I could see you showing her how to use a knife to protect herself." I said. "If she's gonna be looking anything like you damn right I am." He said and I chuckle then shake my head. 

"And then we'd have a nice big backyard and have BBQ's every other weekend. Have friends and neighbors over." I said then I look over at Dean and I give him a sad smile. "It's a nice dream." I whispered and he gives a small smile and nods. "Yeah, it is." He mutters and we look at each other and there was this bittersweet feeling between us.

I use to think that I would never get that life because of the way I'm living right now. But...ever since Dean and I got involved with each other, the more frequent that ideal life comes to my mind and my dreams.

I want to hope that'll it happen but...I'm not so sure.

"Hey." Sam said to us as he meets us in the lobby. We had heard that Jeb, the douchebag magician, was found hanged in his room by the maid of the hotel. So Dean and I went to check it out before we went and met up with Sam. "Maid found Jeb hanging from the ceiling fan. Police think it was a suicide." Dean said and he pulls out another tarot card, this time of the hanged man. "I beg to differ. Pulled a little sleight of hand myself." He said as he hands the card to Sam. "On Dexter's body?" Sam asked. "Yeah, so Dean and I were thinking if this spell is a death transference, then these cards work like black-Magic targets." I said.

"Any connection between the victims?" asked Sam. "Jeb was a total douche bag to Jay yesterday." I said. "What about the first vic? Uh, Vance?" Sam asked. "Asked around. Apparently, Vance was heckling Jay at the bar the day he was killed." Dean said. "Okay, so Jay sneaks a card into Vance's pocket, does the table of death..." Sam said. "And Vance takes 10 swords to the chest." Dean finished. "Then Jay slips a noose and Jeb doesn't." I said. "Hell of a trick." Sam said and I nod.

"Yeah, I think it's time we had a little chat with Jay. Any luck tailing him?" Dean asked Sam who then looked nervous. "He slipped me." He said and Dean and I look at him. "He's a 60-Year-Old." Dean said. "He's a magician." Sam said and I sigh. "C'mon, boys." I said and we leave.

We follow Jay to his hotel room and we enter and aim our guns at him. "Up against the wall!" Dean ordered and Jay turns to us, startled, and raised his hands. "God, who are you? What do you want?" he asked. "Now!" Dean shouts and Jay goes up against the wall.

"We know what you've been up to." Sam said. "You been working some real bad mojo to jump-Start your act." I said and Jay looks between us, confused. "What? I don't know what you're talking about." he said. "Look, we know you put a spell on those tarot cards." Sam said. "Messing with real magic?" Dean said.

"Real magic? Come on, there's no such thing as real magic." Jay said. "Oh, is that so?" I asked, doubting. "Yeah, believe me. I've been around this stuff my whole life. It's all just --It's -- It's illusions. It's tricks. It -- It's all fake." Jay said. "Jeb Dexter strung up --was that just an illusion?" Dean asked and Jay seemed surprised by this.

"What? Something happened to Jeb?" he asked. "He was found hanged in his room. Right after you slipped the noose last night." Sam said. "I don't know what you're talking about. Please...Just let me go." Jay pleads and I turn to the boys, lowering my gun.

"Something's not right." I said. "Usually they're whipping some badass hoodoo at us by now." Sam said and we all nod.

Minutes later, Sam and Dean tied Jay to a chair. "What do you want to do?" Dean asked as we turn our backs to Jay. "All right, so, if it's not him, who is it?" Sam asked. "Even if Jay's not working the magic, he's still getting the reward. His shows are selling out." I said. "All right. So, then, whoever it is, they're obviously in Jay's corner." said Sam.

"All right, so we got Vernon and Charlie on the list. Anyone else?" Dean asked. "Uh...We could always ask him." I said and we turn around and see that Jay had escaped from the chair and is gone. "Guess we should have seen that one coming." Dean said, exasperated. "Come on. He couldn't have gotten that far." Sam said and we leave the room.

"No way he could outrun us." Sam said as we walk out onto the lobby. "Maybe he vanished. I mean, he really is good." Dean suggested. "Or he found a back door." I said. "That's them!" A voice shouted and we turns to see Jay coming up behind us as the police come into the lobby.

"Those are the three nut jobs that just broke into my room!" Jay shouts and the police run towards us and cuffs us. Great! I thought, miserably.

After spending a day in jail, the officer then told me and the boys that we were free to go. "Why?" Sam asked them. "Charges against you three were dropped." The officer said and the boys and I share a look before we walk out.

Later, we make it to the hotel lobby where we see Jay standing by, waiting for us. "Jay. Thanks for dropping the charges." Sam said. "You mind telling us why you did it?" Dean asked and I noticed that Jay looked very upset. "We have to talk." he said.

Minutes later, Jay took us to a bar and we all had drinks while he tells us that Charlie had died after Jay had done another death-defying stunt. "I was just a kid when we first met. All I knew was how to cheat at cards. Charlie got me out of more scrapes than I can count. Hell, I would have been dead by the age of 20 if it hadn't been for him." Jay explained then he sighs. "...he was more than my friend. He was my brother."

"I'm sorry, Jay." I said, sympathetically. "Look, I should have listened to you guys when you told me that my show was killing people." Jay said. "Well, you weren't the one pulling the trigger." Dean said. "Yeah, but someone did, and I want to find out who did this to Charlie, so I'll do whatever you guys say. Just tell me what to do." Jay said. 

"Jay, whoever's doing this...They like you. They're probably close to you." Sam said. "Did Charlie and Vernon get along?" I asked Jay. "No. No, it's not Vernon." Jay said, shaking his head disbelieving. "He's the only one that makes sense." Dean said.

"Charlie and Vernon were your family, Jay." Sam said as Jay looks between us. "And now Charlie's gone." I said. "Yeah, but...they butted heads sometimes, but Vernon could never do something like this." Jay said. "See, the thing about real magic is it's a whole lot like crack. People do surprising things once they get a taste of it." said Dean and Jay looks at us and sighs. "You better be damn sure about this. Vernon's all I got left." he said.

*3rd Person POV*

Vernon picks up his phone. 'Yeah? Yeah, okay. I'll be there in two shakes. I got something to tell you anyway." He said and he leaves. Seconds later, Sam, Dean and (y/n) enter Vernon's hotel room. "Wow. It's like a...magic museum." Sam said, awed at all of the props and posters. "You must be in heaven." Dean said as (y/n) looks around the room. 

"This guy doesn't travel light." she remarks. "He's been on the road his whole life. Probably everything he owns is in this room." Sam points out. "Let's get started." 

"Just talked to the head of the convention. Headliner gig is yours." Vernon said to Jay as he walks up to him after arriving at the convention building. Jay turns to him with a look of disappointment on his face.

"What? You don't want it?" Vernon asked him and Jay looks down and sighs. "A day ago, if you told me I'd be standing on this stage..." Jay said as he paces the stages then stops and turns to his friend. "No, I can't do it, Vernon." He said.

"What are you talking about?" Vernon asked. "Charlie's gone." Jay said, upset. "Charlie would have wanted you to go on. This is your shot. It's our shot." Vernon said. "Really? This is what Charlie would have wanted?" Jay asked as Vernon looks at him, confused.

"Charlie's dead." Jay said. "Hey, he was my friend, too, you know." Vernon said, defensively. "It's a hell of a way to treat a friend." Jay said, accusatory. "Again, what are you talking about?" Vernon asked and Jay walks up to him.

"You killed him, didn't you? And for what? So that I -- So that we could be back on top?" He asked. "That's insane." Vernon chuckles but noticed that Jay was serious. "No, you're scaring me." He said.

"First it was Vance, then it was Jeb . Even if you thought you were doing it for me, how in God's name could you kill Charlie?" Jay asked him, angrily. "Oh, you are crazy." Vernon said. "You used me, and you used my act to do this to him. If you think --" Jay started to say but a voice speaks up. "I wouldn't be so hard on him, Jay. He didn't do it."

"This is just a bunch of old-Timey magic stuff --None of it magic." Dean said as they continue to look around Vernon's room. "No herbs, no candles, and no tarot cards." Sam said, downtrodden, as (y/n) picks up a poster and her jaw drops and her eyes widens.

"I'll be damned." She said. "What?" the boys asked her. She holds up the poster to them to see a familiar man but he was younger looking. "Look like anyone we know?" she asked them and their eyes are just as wide as hers.

"Sweet Mary and Joseph." Vernon said, shocked, as him and Jay look at the young man that approached them. "Charlie." Jay said, confused, and the man smiles. "It's really me, Jay." he said.

"How the hell..." Vernon said, confused,  and Charlie chuckles. "God, you forget what it feels like to be young. It's amazing." Charlie said. "How old are you?" Jay asked. "Oh, it depends on what you mean by old. Right now, technically, about 28, but I've been around a lot longer than that." Charlie said.

"How long?" Jay asked him. "Long enough to have shilled for Barnum. And he gave me something." Charlie said and he holds up a book. "What's that?" Jay asked, nodding at the book. "The grimoire --A book of real magic. At first, I thought it was a scam, but then I tried one of the spells, and it worked. In fact, they all worked. So when I got to the end and there was one for immortality..." Charlie explains.

"My God, Charlie." Vernon said, shocked. "And my show, the things that I can do." Jay said. "Different spell. But it gives you a little taste of what's possible." Charlie said and he pulls out a deck of tarot cards and Jay goes to reach out for them but Charlie pulls back. "Oh, no, I wouldn't touch those, Vernon. They're --They're still radioactive." He said.

"You killed Vance and Jeb Dexter." Jay said. "What, you think this is a parlor game? You were being humiliated by those punks. A washed-up old man who couldn't even defend himself." Charlie said, getting angry.

"You used me to do these terrible things." Jay yells. "I used them to give you a gift. And you wanted it, Jay. I saw it in your eyes." Charlie said and Jay shakes his head. "No, I never wanted this." he said. "You were ready to kill yourself. I saved your life." Charlie said and this makes Jay stop in his tracks while Vernon gives Jay a shocked look 

"Is that right, Jay?" He asked Jay, who doesn't respond. "I was there for you, like I've always been. Like I'll always be. Come with me, both of you. You think the first time around was good? The second time's even better. All the know how, none of the aches and pain." Charlie said. "No, I won't do this. I won't." Jay said. "I've never made this offer before. But, then again, I've never had friends like the two of you before. Let me do this for you." Charlie offered the men.

"And who else has to die so that we can live forever? What's the price tag on immortality?" Jay asked and Charlie doesn't answer. "This isn't right, Charlie, what you're doing. You know that. Somewhere, you know that." he said. "I know I don't want to come back alone, to start all over, alone." Charlie said then Vernon turns to Jay.

"Jay...We can be young again." He said and Jay couldn't believe Vernon was buying into this. "The three of us together -- Vital and alive...forever." Charlie said, smiling.

"Not so fast!" a voice calls out and all three men turn and see Dean, Sam and (y/n) walking in. "I ain't Guttenberg, and this ain't Cocoon. Immortality. That's a neat trick." Dean said. "It's not a trick. It's magic." Charlie said, smiling, then two nnoose appear behind Dean and (y/n), drop around their necks and lift them up.

Sam shoots Charlie but Charlie catches the bullet in his teeth. "Hey, bullet catch --Been working on that." Charlie said after he pulls the bullet out of his mouth. "Get him!" Dean gasped as he and (y/n) get strangled. 

Sam goes towards Charlie but he disappears then reappears behind Sam. "Let them go -- Now!" Sam yells. "Just leave me and my friends alone. All right, I will give it up --The spells, the hexes. This is the last time. I promise." Charlie said then he pushes Sam onto a the sword-table.

Sam gets strapped in then looks up to see the swords hanging above him, the rope holding it getting slowly cut. (Y/n) and Dean were choking and gagging as the noose ties tighter and tighter around their necks.

Then Charlie clutches his stomach, where he is now bleeding. Charlie looks over and sees Jay had stabbed himself in the stomach, holding a tarot card. "Jay...You picked these strangers over me?" Charlie asked Jay as he falls back and then he dies.

Sam's restraints latch off of Sam and he gets off of the table before the swords land down on the table. The nooses let Dean and (y/n) go and they fall on the ground and begin to cough. "You guys okay?" Sam asked as he walks up to the two. "Yeah." (y/n) coughs. "Yeah, I'm all right." Dean said while Jay stares at the dead body of his friend before he tears up, Vernon watched all of this in shock.

*(y/n)'s POV*

The boys and I walk over to Jay at the bar the next day, Jay was sitting and drinking which I can't blame him after what he had to do. "Hey, Jay. We wanted to thank you for what you did yesterday." Dean said. "I killed my best friend yesterday, and you want to thank me?" Jay said, venomously.

"Where's Vernon?" Sam asked him. "Oh, he's gone. He said he didn't want to speak to me again after what I did to Charlie." Jay said, upset, and I couldn't help but feel sorry for the man. "Listen, Jay...you know Charlie was never gonna give up what he was doing. Ever. You did the right thing." I tell him and he looks up at me. "Are you sure about that?" He asked me and I don't respond 

"You know, Charlie was like my brother. And now he's dead... because I did the right thing. He offered me a gift, and I just threw it back in his face. So now I have to spend the rest of my life old and alone. What's so right about that?" Jay asked and he gets up and walks out. "Jay...your cards." the bartender said as she points at the cards. Jay looks at them then sighs. "Throw them away." he said and he walks out while the bartender looks at the cards, sadly.

"Well, I don't know about you, but...I could go for a beer." Dean said and I let out sigh and nod. "Yeah, me too." I said as I rub my eyes. "I'm gonna take a walk." Sam said and he walks out. Dean and I share a look before we go to the bar and order our drinks.

We drank a few rounds in silence until Dean speaks up. "Have you thought of names?" He asked and I turn to him. "What?" I asked him. "Names...for our kids." He said and I furrow my brow. "Why are you..?" I asked but he turns his head to me. "Just...indulge me for a bit." He said and I slowly smile. 

"Well...I've gone back and forth with some names. I've thought for a boy it's between Jack or Jared..." I said and Dean nods a bit. "Jack sounds good but Jared...I don't know sounds like a name for a weirdo." He said and I chuckle. "And for the girl...I like Claire or Jolene." I said and Dean turns his head to me. "What?" I asked. "Isn't Jolene a song?" Dean asked and I nod.

"Yeah, I know the song is about homewrecker but...I liked the name when Dad introduced me to the song during one of our trips onto another job for him." I said and Dean smiles. "Either way, all those names are pretty good." Dean said and I look at him. "Wait, really? No sarcasm?" I asked, surprised. "No sarcasm." He said and I stare at him for moment then I turn back to my drink.

"Course I think I can come up with better names." Dean said and I turn my head back to him. "Like what?" I asked. "Dean Jr." He said, giving a sarcastic smile, and I snort out a laugh. "One Dean Winchester is enough." I said and Dean laughs and sips his beer.

"Having a kid named after you, not gonna happen…although I think you gave me an idea to name our kid after their Uncle Sam." I said, jokingly, and Dean chokes on his beer. "Nope...not gonna happen." He coughs and I laugh. "Don’t let your brother hear you say that, you could hurt his feelings.” I teased, feigning sadness. "Whatever." Dean said, dismissively, and I giggle before we go back to enjoying our drinks.

"Now, about that whole you being a tied to the bed kind've girl..." 

"Oh God." I groaned.

@rach5ive @kitsun369 @itzabbyxx @cevans-winchester @ellie-andthemachine